CHATHAM, Ont. - Another 200 jobs are disappearing from the Navistar truck plant in Chatham, Ont.

The cuts at the southwestern Ontario truck plant take effect March 1, the union representing workers at the industrial plant said Tuesday.

The plant is operated by International Truck and Engine Corp., a company owned by Navistar International Corp. (NYSE:NAV), a publicly traded U.S. company based in Illinois that employs more than 15,000 people.

International Truck faced closure in 2003 during a previous downturn in the heavy truck market and received a $60 million provincial government bailout package at the time to keep the Chatham plant open.

Joe McCabe of the Canadian Auto Workers union said employees were informed of the decision Monday. The latest reductions are in addition to 490 layoffs announced in November and slated to take place at the end of January.

At the time, Liberal Economic Development Minister Michael Bryant said the province will enforce the 2003 deal and make the company repay financial aid if it violates the bailout agreement.

McCabe says it's frustrating to see the loss of jobs in Ontario when production at the company's plant in Mexico is increasing.

Once all of the layoffs occur, 180 workers will remain at the Chatham plant.

The heavy truck industry has been hit hard by the U.S. recession and slumping Canadian economy, which has led to the bankruptcy of 2,500 trucking companies across North America in the last year or so.

Last fall, rival Sterling Truck in St. Thomas, Ont. announced the closing of its factory in March, cutting about 2,000 jobs.

The slumping U.S. economy and tough credit markets have already battered the North American auto sector, leading to widespread layoffs and plant closures in the United States and Canada.

General Motors Corp. (NYSE:GM) plans to shut its pickup truck plant in Oshawa, Ont. this spring, with the loss of 2,600 jobs. GM is also closing a transmission plant in Windsor, Ont. next year, affecting another 1,400 jobs.

More cuts at GM, Ford and Chrysler could be coming if the so-called Detroit Three car makers restructure their operations in the next few months to stay alive and tap into government bailout financing on both sides of the border.

In trading Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange, Navistar shares rose 72 cents to US$30.82, a gain of 2.4 per cent.