Deland Toyota Scion

When the doors opened at Toyota Motor Manufacturing, West Virginia, Inc. (TMMWV) in 1996 there were 250 workers.  Fifteen years later there are over 1,000 workers and over the years this manufacturing facility has built roughly 8.6 million transmissions.

With such a large, dedicated workforce, Toyota has a lot to be grateful for, which is why the Japanese automaker held a large celebration in honor of the plant's 15-years of solid production. However, it was the plant's workers who were ultimately the most grateful, as they opted to share roughly $100,000 in collected donations with…

Toyota feels that when coping with below-normal production levels, it's better to take a glass-half-full approach. As such, the Japanese automaker isn't sitting back leaving their employees to sit idly by consumed by worry. Rather, they're supporting, and even paying, employees to take time on no-production days to lend a helping hand with a variety of community service efforts.

For example, one-hundred-plus Toyota employees recently reported for "work" at the Golden Girl Group Home. Located in Wayne Country, West Virginia, the home offers asylum to teen girls removed from abusive situations. Toyota employees took a no-production day…

The earthquake, tsunami and subsequent power outages that struck northeastern Japan in March disrupted operations at all Japanese automaker facilities and damaged the plants of key parts suppliers. From March 11 to the end of May, vehicle production shortages jumped to 550,000 units in Japan and another 350,000 units overseas. After investigating the extent of the damage in the aftermath, Toyota projected they could increase operating levels from 50 percent to about 70-percent, in coming months and to 100 percent, hopefully by the end of the fourth quarter.

More recent projections, however, look much more optimistic. From March…