Canada’s economic development minister says the Chrysler Pacifica will qualify for a rebate program.

Navdeep Bains made the trip to Windsor on Friday after Fiat Chrysler Automobiles said a day earlier it would cut 1,500 jobs at the Windsor Assembly Plant.

Bains said the Windsor-built Pacifica hybrid would qualify for an electric vehicle rebate program the government announced in its latest budget, bowing to a request by the union.

"That should help Canadian families that are trying to drive cleaner vehicles to do so in a more affordable way," says Bains.

Bains spoke to media at the Windsor and District Chamber of Commerce Friday afternoon.

He says the federal program will offer a $5,000 incentive for people to buy Hybrid Pacificas.

"We recognize as a government, we want Canadians to have access to Canadian vehicles, clean vehicles at affordable prices so that rebate will be applicable to the Pacifica," says Bains.

Both the Ontario and Federal governments have committed to helping workers facing layoffs.

Bains said he would fight for jobs when he sits down for a meeting with FCA Canada president Reid Bigland Friday.

"We're here to support workers, we want to fight for every single job," he says.

The company said Thursday it would cut the third shift at its Windsor plant, which produces the Chrysler Pacifica and its hybrid version, as well as the Dodge Grand Caravan, at the end of September to better align production with global demand.

The shift cut comes as there's been a decline in minivan demand, but Bains said Canada can still attract new auto investments.

"We think we're really well positioned to continue to see new mandates here in Canada for the automotive sector."

Sales of the Pacifica this year are down 54 per cent in Canada through February and 24 per cent in the U.S. Sales of the Grand Caravan are down more than 20 per cent in both countries over the same period

The Windsor Assembly Plant, which employs over 6,000 people, underwent a $2-billion retooling in 2015 to start building the Chrysler Pacifica.

When operating at full volume, the Windsor plant produces nearly 1,500 minivans per day.

There has been a third production shift at Windsor Assembly since the early 1990’s.

With files from The Canadian Press.