After two years of increases, highway fatalities were down last year - and the trend appears to be continuing in 2018. Data from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) showed that 37,133 people died in motor vehicle crashes on U.S. highways in 2017. That’s a decrease of almost 2 percent from 2016.

Here’s a look at recent OSHA and state-level OSHA enforcement activities across the U.S., from Hawaii to Connecticut, in construction, manufacturing, food processing and other industries.

Amazon, the retail giant which announced this week an across-the-board wage increase to $15 an hour for all employees, must also pay “urgent attention” to workplace safety issues, says the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health (National COSH).

Communication and mentoring are two of the talents that got Tim Manherz, senior vice president of operations at Houston-based TAS Commercial Concrete, a safety award from his industry. The American Society of Concrete Contractors (ASCC) named Manherz this year’s recipient of the ASCC Member Owner Safety Award – an honor that recognizes an owner/executive in the industry who displays a focus and passion for safety, and provides the leadership that creates a best-in-class safety culture.

A Sauganash, Ill. city water department worker dies after an underground trench collapses around him during a routine project. A man dies after he was trapped in dirt up to his waist while working at a home construction site in Washington State. A Smithton, Pa. teenager dies when the walls of a 10-foot-deep trench collapse on him as he helps install a septic system.

Coal mining is an important part of the U.S. economy. In 2017, about 30% of our electricity was generated by coal-fired power plants. Coal is also used to make steel and in manufacturing many types of products. And anyone who watches the news knows how important the jobs and income provided by coal mining are to our country’s coal mining regions.

There’s a new tool available to help small construction companies and their employees assess and improve their jobsite safety climate. The Safety Climate Assessment Tool for Small Contractors or S-CATsc from the Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR) lists the eight leading safety climate indicators and related statements.

Take a closer look at how motorcycle licenses are granted and develop standards for crash warning systems. These are among the recommendations from a National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) assessment of motorcycle crashes on U.S. roadways, which claimed 5,286 lives in 2016.

Besides breakups and meeting “shawty” on the dancefloor, pop music obsesses over another aspect of contemporary culture: working nine-to-five. Since Elvis Costello penned Welcome to the Working Week in ’77, Dolly’s hit about tumbling out of bed to pour “a cup of ambition” has been streamed 8.46 million times and The Bangles’ Manic Monday dominated the charts in over ten countries.

A blistering new report by the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General (OIG) says that OSHA’s revised fatality and severe injury reporting requirements are failing to produce accurate data, which hinders the agency’s ability to effectively target compliance assistance and enforcement efforts.