Transportation Department Demands Documents from Toyota
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In a not-so-surprising move the United States Department of Transportation has demanded that Toyota give over documents relating to the recalls that have plagued the company. The department is going to see if Toyota acted swiftly enough in the wake of the recalls, and the documents requested will also tell the government when and how Toyota learned of the safety defects in millions of their vehicles.
The automobile transport industry is not surprised by this move – Toyota has been under a lot of pressure for quite some time, and the rest of the automobile industry are hoping that this is resolved quickly. The subpoenas were delivered to Toyota this past Tuesday, and now the company has between 30 and 60 days to respond or face massive fines from the US government. Toyota has already halted production at their San Antonio, Texas plant and has declared a full day off at their Georgetown, Kentucky plant, with three more days scheduled in March. Toyota currently employs over 1,800 workers in Texas and another 6,500 in Kentucky, but has made no plans to lay any workers off or fire any workers at this time. So if you work for Toyota, you need not worry at the moment, which is good.