Earlier today, General Motors CEO Mary Bara said the company would be making a big announcement about the next-generation Chevrolet Corvette, which is set to make its debut on July 18, 2019. Well, here it is: GM has just announced it will be adding a second shift (more than 400 hourly jobs) at its Bowling Green, Kentucky assembly plant to support the production of the next generation Corvette. This second shift will bring the plant's workforce to 1,300.

"The Corvette's iconic status owes so much to the men and women of Bowling Green, where it has been built exclusively for almost 40 years," said GM Chairman and CEO Mary Barra. "This is the workforce that can deliver a next-generation Corvette worthy of both its historic past and an equally exciting future, and today's announcement gets us one step closer to its reveal on July 18."

Bowling Green has built more than one million Corvettes since it opened in 1981 and received more than $900 million worth of investment for a new body shop, increased engine capacity, new paint shop, and a new Performance Build Center. GM has reportedly spent around $349 million getting the plant ready to build the new C8, a task which was likely not been made any cheaper with the switch to a mid-engine layout.

We still don't know if any of the new workforce will be made up of previously laid-off employees from the Chevy Cruze plant in Lordstown, Ohio but it seems likely. Chevy dealerships have already started to take pre-orders for the new car, so GM needs more workers to keep up with the anticipated demand. After months of spy shots and speculations, the C8 Corvette is just months away and we cannot wait to see it.