General Motors Corporation has been having a hard time lately. So much so that its biggest rival, Toyota Motor Corporation, is fast gaining on the US automaker, with many industry observers predicting that soon, the Japanese automaker will be the top automaker - effectively edging out what was once known as the world's Big Three.
As part of its move to ease their current financial troubles, General Motors has decided to cut the operation on its Canadian plant in Oshawa. This means the car company is laying off 1,200 workers and cutting the three shifts on making both Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickup trucks. The facility plant also makes car parts like .
The change will not affect the GM's Tonawanda plant, according to GM spokeswoman Mary Ann Brown. She also said that the plant will not be affected because it is the only plant that produces engine supplies for the Chevrolet Impala. The line was not included on the cutbacks.
Although the Tonawanda facility does not currently produce the engines for the two pick up brands, the 4.5 liter diesel engine plant will be producing the new car part in 2009 for the Silverados and Sierras going out on the market this coming 2010.
According to the General Motor's spokesman Stew Low of Oshawa, GM is trying to do all the efforts to improve its production of more pickups in the North America. The news signifies the slump on the US car market and even on automotive sectors in Canada.
Brown also said that in Tonawanda, the general economic conditions has a great impact on the production requirements but not on the workforce levels beyond anything with connection with what the plant has already announced.
She also added on a statement, "We had expected the economic downturn that has been talked about to impact us more than it has. We thought we were going to a one-shift operation from two shifts at our 2.2 liter and 3.5 liter engine lines, but production schedules are such that we will not have to do that now."
She also said the engine production will be down slightly.
The announcement made by the GM about its plant may lay off 145 working employees on the said plant for up to two years. The plant starts its changes on September 24 and will only lower the production requirements to cope up with the budget loss.