Ford of Canada will hire up to 500 new workers for its local assembly plant by July.

The automaker needs the staff to keep up with demand for its Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX crossover utility vehicles.

Ford spokesperson Lauren More said the jobs will be offered first to 700 laid-off workers in Windsor before applications are opened to others.

Those products will be joined in July by the new Ford Flex, a full-size crossover utility vehicle.

The jobs will be in the final assembly part of the gigantic plant and will pay up to $34 an hour in wage and cost of living allowance.

Canadian Auto Workers union president Buzz Hargrove hailed the announcement as a welcome bit of good news in an industry that has been badly battered in recent years.

"This is one of a few bits of good news we've had in this industry in a long time," he said. "For the last three or four years, it's been nothing but shutdowns and layoffs."

The Oakville expansion is the second jobs boost Ford has delivered for Ontario in the past month. Earlier, the company announced it would reopen an engine plant in Windsor, bringing back 300 of almost 1,000 laid-off workers. Some Windsor workers were also able to claim jobs in the company's St. Thomas assembly plant where a new product created demand.

"It does seem like we have a certain momentum going here," More said.

The third shift in the plant will bring employment to 3,500.

- From Torstar News Service