Toyota delayed the introduction of a second shift at the factory Woodstock

Toyota Canada announced Friday that it delayed the introduction of a second shift to its Woodstock plant in southern Ontario, due to the general weakness of the operation of the automobile.

Woodstock Mayor Michael Harding said the first shift, which must employ 1,200 people, will be established as expected.

The second shift is expected to hire 800 additional workers.

Toyota executives have also confirmed that their production targets of 150,000 vehicles per year were unchanged.

The automotive industry in Ontario has been severely affected by a series of layoffs and plant closures, partly because of soaring oil prices, the strong Canadian dollar and a economic slowdown in the United States, the main market sales of cars and trucks manufactured in Canada.

The Ontario economy has also been affected by a weakening of the manufacturing sector. For a year, he lost 88,000 jobs in the manufacturing sector, on a national scale.