Maytag Corp. said second-quarter profits plunged 63 percent as the No. 3 U.S. maker of appliances was hurt by a slump in sales of floor-care products and charges related to workforce reductions and a plant closure.

Net income dropped to $25.2 million, or 32 cents per share, from $68 million, or 86 cents, during 2002’s second quarter. Sales fell 2.5 percent to $1.16 billion from $1.19 billion.

Maytag has been hurt worse than expected by an industrywide slump in demand for washers, dryers and floor-care products. Higher prices for steel, pensions and medical costs for retirees are also weighing on the company.

Earlier this month, Standard & Poor’s Corp. downgraded Maytag’s credit ratings, citing the company’s weakening financial performance. On July 9, Maytag said Chief Financial Officer Steven Wood was leaving the company and that former Danaher Corp. executive George C. Moore would replace him.

In March, the manufacturer warned that sales had dropped at its Hoover floor-care products division because of bad weather and slipping consumer confidence. In April, the company said it would slash about 500 salaried positions. The Newton-based company has about 20,900 workers, roughly 6,400 of whom are salaried.

To compete against rivals Whirlpool Corp. and General Electric Co., the No. 1 and No. 2 domestic appliance makers, respectively, Maytag Chairman and Chief Executive Ralph Hake has embarked on a cost-cutting program that is expected to save about $100 million annually after this year by streamlining logistics, benefits, its workforce and by closing a factory and moving some production to Mexico.

The company is also introducing new products, including a large oven and a top-loading version of its popular Neptune washing machine. The price of steel is expected to fall after tariffs introduced by President George Bush were ruled illegal by the World Trade Organization in March.

“We worked hard to reduce our costs, and those efforts should continue to pay off in the second half as we benefit from our restructuring savings, steel cost reductions and multiple product launches,” Hake said in a statement.

The company’s second-quarter results included charges of $18.8 million, or 24 cents per share, related to the closure of a manufacturing plant in Galesburg, Ill., and a reduction of the company’s salaried workforce. Excluding the charges, per-share profits would have been 56 cents, which matched the average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson First Call.

For the year, Hake reiterated guidance he gave analysts and investors in April, saying that he expects the company to have per-share profits of $1.80 to $1.90, including restructuring charges of about $60 million, or 50 cents per share. Wall Street analysts had expected, on average, earnings of $2.27.