GM Adds Shift, Workers to Build Midsize Pickups

A flood of orders for all-new midsize pickup trucks from General Motors Co. has prompted the company to schedule a third shift and hire 750 more workers to build them.

GM's new Chevrolet Colorado ($21,000) and GMC Canyon small pickups will hit U.S. dealer showrooms later this autumn. The company already has received nearly 30,000 dealer orders for the trucks, an unusually high volume.

Initial production is being handled by 1,300 workers on two shifts at GM's Wentzville, Mo., factory. The 750 additional workers will start early next year. The plant employs another 1,300 people to build Chevy Express and GMC Savana fullsize vans.

GM dropped out of the midsize pickup market in 2012, a year after Ford Motor Co. abandoned the segment. Sales of such vehicles in the U.S. surpassed 1 million units 20 years ago but have since dwindled to about 227,000 units.

GM is betting that the enhanced content, modern styling and improved fuel economy of its new entries will revive interest in the segment.