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The expansion of the craft brewery industry is continuing at a rapid pace, leading to increased sales - and safety concerns at worksites. Although beer sales in the U.S. were down one percent overall in 2017, craft brewer sales were up by five percent, making that market segment account for an impressive 12.7 percent of the total beer market and more than 23 percent of retail sales of beer.

The federal government is pondering how best to accommodate automated vehicles under standards that were developed when all cars were driven solely by humans and self-driving vehicles were not even a glimmer on the horizon. As a part of the process, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is inviting the public to comment on a pair of petitions from Nuro and General Motors (GM) about exemptions to those standards.

Seventy-five percent of U.S. employers have been directly affected by opioids but – startlingly ¬– only 17 percent feel extremely well prepared to deal with the issue, according to a survey released today by the National Safety Council in recognition of Poison Prevention Week. Thirty-eight percent have experienced absenteeism or impaired worker performance, and 31 percent have had an overdose, arrest, a near-miss or an injury because of employee opioid use.

A Vermont state trooper collapsed after being exposed to an unknown substance during a traffic stop and was revived by colleagues who administered several doses of Narcan, a drug used to reverse opioid overdoses. News sources say Sgt. Brett Flansburg stopped a driver for a moving violation Friday night in Leicester, about 40 miles south of Burlington. The driver, 25-year-old Taylor Woodward, then reportedly swallowed a baggie that he later said contained cocaine.

Washington State and Missouri will get some help in combating the opioid crisis in the form of Dislocated Worker Grants (DWG) from the U.S. Department of Labor. The Missouri Division of Workforce Development will receive up to $4,090,306 and the Washington State Department of Employment Security will get $886,860 to fund disaster relief jobs and employment services in counties impacted by the health and economic effects of widespread opioid use, addiction, and overdose.

Thirty-four Congressional Democrats are calling for the reinstatement of the original Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses rule published on May 12, 2016, which required companies with 250 or more employees to electronically submit OSHA forms 300 (Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses) and 301 (Injury and Illness Incident Report) each year. The Trump administration’s final rule, which was published during the government shutdown, only requires employers to submit a 300A – a summary of work-related injuries and illnesses.