A downturn in the US housing market is partly being blamed for the job losses at Rohm and Haas, in Ellison Street, Jarrow.

Management broke the news to the workforce this week, and jobs are set to go across all sections of the plant.

Site manager Richard Moss said he is "very disappointed" about the redundancies, but added that staff knew the company faced "challenging" international trading conditions.

Mr Moss said: "There has been a global shift in markets, but the downturn in the US housing and construction sector, where our products are used for paints and preservatives, has hit us particularly badly.

"We are losing 24 jobs across all areas, but there is no exact timescale for when the jobs will go. Negotiations have started with the relevant union officials."

American-owned Rohm and Haas, which makes biocides (bug-killing products), for paints, cosmetics and other applications, employed a workforce of more than 200 a decade ago.

But that figure has shrunk to 92, with 40 jobs being shed when part of the Jarrow chemical operation was switched to China about 18 months ago.

Mr Moss added: "We hope there will be no more job losses and are looking at raw material efficiencies.

"A total of £3m has been invested in Jarrow over the last two years and we aim to safeguard the future of the plant by focusing our operations."

Based in Philadelphia, Rohm and Haas employs more than 16,000 staff at 100 facilities in 27 countries. The Jarrow plant has operated for more than 50 years.