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DES MOINES, Iowa – U.S. Agriculture Department employees worked full-time at two Iowa egg farms at the center of a salmonella outbreak and massive recall, but two former workers said they ignored complaints about conditions at one site.

The USDA employees worked next to areas where roughly 7.7 million caged hens laid eggs at the two operations, but agency spokesman Caleb Weaver said their main duties are “grading” the eggs and they aren’t primarily responsible for looking for health problems.

Full Story at money.cnn.com

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — General Motors is recalling a total of 243,403 of its popular large crossover SUVs for a problem that could damage the rear seatbelt buckles. Most of the recalled vehicles are in the United States.

In some of the vehicles, the seatbelt buckle can be damaged when the second row seat is returned to its normal position after being folded down.

If this happens the seatbelt may not latch completely even when it seems to be securely buckled. The seat belt also may not latch or unlatch or may seem to be jammed, GM said.

Full Story at msnbc.com

WASHINGTON — Honda Motor Co. is recalling the popular Accord and Civic passenger cars to address problems with an ignition switch that could allow the key to be removed without the transmission being shifted into park, its third recall over the problem since 2003.

Honda said the most recent recall involved 384,220 vehicles and includes 2003 model year Accord and Civics and 2003-2004 versions of the Honda Element. Honda told the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that the defect with the automatic transmissions could lead to a vehicle rolling away and increase the risk of a crash.

Full Story at money.cnn.com

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Drugmaker Johnson & Johnson said Tuesday that it has received a grand jury subpoena and is cooperating with a federal investigation stemming from multiple recalls of its popular non-prescription drugs.

The company, which also reported its quarterly results, said it was addressing a variety of legal actions, including lawsuits against its McNeil Consumer Healthcare unit, ongoing investigations into the recalls and a grand jury subpoena from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

Full Story at money.cnn.com

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — The drugmaking arm of Johnson & Johnson said late Thursday that it is laying off hundreds of workers at the manufacturing plant at the center of a recall of millions of units of children’s Tylenol, Motrin and other over-the-counter drugs.

Johnson & Johnson’s (JNJ, Fortune 500) McNeil Consumer Healthcare division said 300 of more than 400 positions at the Fort Washington, PA facility will be eliminated as the company conducts a complete quality overhaul at the facility.

Full Story at msnbc.com

TOKYO — Toyota Motor Corp. said Thursday about 270,000 cars sold worldwide — including luxury Lexus sedans — have potentially faulty engines, the latest quality lapse to hit the automaker following massive global recalls of top-selling models.

Japan’s top-selling daily Yomiuri said in its evening edition that Toyota will inform the transport ministry of a recall on Monday. The paper cited no sources.

Toyota spokesman Hideaki Homma said the company was evaluating measures to deal with the problem of defective engines that can stall while the vehicle is moving. He would not confirm a recall was being considered.

Full Story at  msnbc.com

WASHINGTON — Toyota said Friday it will recall 17,000 Lexus luxury hybrids after testing showed that fuel can spill during a rear end crash.

The Japanese automaker said tests conducted for the National Traffic Highway Safety Administration found that fuel leaked during a rear impact crash at 50 miles per hour on a 2010 HS250h sedan. The test, conducted by a NHTSA contractor, showed that fuel spilled as the vehicle spun around after impact.

Full Story at msnbc.com

DETROIT – Chrysler is recalling nearly 35,000 Dodge Calibers in the United States and around the world to fix a potential problem with sticky gas pedals, the same issue that has affected millions of Toyotas.

Chrysler Group LLC said it will recall about 25,000 Calibers in the U.S. from the 2007 model year and a limited number of 2007 Jeep Compass SUVs to inspect vehicles built between March and May of 2006. The remaining vehicles are in Mexico, Canada and elsewhere.

Full Story at msnbc.com

NEW YORK – Toyota Motor Corp. said Friday it is recalling about 3,800 Lexus LS sedans in the U.S. to fix a problem with the vehicle’s steering system following a similar recall in Japan.

The company said the recall affects some 2009 and 2010 LS 460 and LS 600h sedans.

Full Story at msnbc.com

WASHINGTON – Toyota Motor Corp. is expected to agree to a fine of more than $16 million, the largest government penalty levied against an automaker, for a four-month delay in telling federal authorities about defective gas pedals on its vehicles, a Transportation Department official said Sunday.

Toyota faces a Monday deadline to accept or contest the $16.4 million fine over evidence it knew about sticking gas pedals in September but did not issue a recall until January.

Full Story at money.cnn.com

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Toyota said Friday it will recall about 600,000 Sienna minivans to address potential corrosion on spare tire cables.

The recall includes certain 1998 to 2010 model years sold in the United States and operated in cold climate areas, the automaker said in a statement.

Full Story atmoney.cnn.com

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Federal safety regulators said Wednesday they have received 10 complaints from drivers alleging sudden acceleration in Toyota vehicles that have already been repaired under the automaker’s recent recall.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it has reached out to the consumers in question to gather more information about the complaints, which were not immediately verifiable.