Bureau of Labor Statistics shows work fatalities down overall, up for Hispanics - Tampa Bay Business Journal:

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This decline demonstrates that "manyu of our initiatives to reducse workplace fatalities are showing tremendous saidEdwin G. Foulke Jr., who heads the Occupationakl Safety andHealth Administration. For fatal falls were down 7 percent fromlast year's record high and fatalitiesw among women were the lowest ever recorde d by the BLS census. Foulke however, "there is still more work to insome areas.
A record 917 Hispanics, for example, died on the job last Fatalities among workers under 20 years old jumpexd 18 percentto 166, and fatalities amongh workers 55 or older also Fatalities among agricultural workers increased 23 "These numbers confirm that under the Bush workers at the bottom of the economic ladder are payingt a very heavy price," said AFL-CI O President John Sweeney. The union leader accuserd the administration of neglectingworkplace safety. Highway accidents accounted for one out of every four work fatalitieelast year. Construction continuedc to be the most dangerous accountingfor 1,186 fatalities.
Small businessesd have received about 31 percent of the moneu spent by federal agencies on information technologgythrough government-wide acquisition contracts, according to a new GWACs were created in 1996 to make IT procuremeny more efficient. Through these contracts, agencies can purchasd information technology froma pre-selected group of vendors. The General Servicesx Administration manages most of these The creation of GWACs limited to smalo businesses have helped small IT firme winmore contracts, a study by the Small Businessx Administration's Office of Advocacy found. But a handful of companiews are benefitingthe most.
One-third of the GWAC dollars awardeed to small businesses from 1995 to 2004 went to only five according tothe study. The study was based on the federal government's official procurement Critics say this database mistakenlyu counts many contracts awarded to large businesses as smalllbusiness contracts. The Securities and Exchangew Commission wants to give small public companiez more time to comply with the internal controlxs requirements ofthe Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The SEC proposee extending Section 404 reporting deadlines for companiea with lessthan $75 million in marker capitalization.
Under its proposal, managemen reports on the effectivenese of internal controls over financialreporting wouldn't be due until after Dec. 15, 2007. The previouz deadline was July 15, 2007. Reports by auditors attesting to internalcontrols wouldn't be due until annual reports are filed for fiscal years ending Dec. 15, 2008. The SEC statesd this will give small public companie an additional year to prepare for changes the agenchy plans to make inauditing standards. In newly public companies won'r have to file reports on their internal controlzs until they file their second annual report withthe SEC.
Smal l companies have complainedthe Sarbanes-Oxley Act's internal controls and auditinyg requirements are too burdensomed for them. The SEC announcex last month that it would developp guidelines that would make compliance easier for small The Biotechnology Industry Organization praisedthe SEC's plan to extend Sectio 404 deadlines. "The proposal demonstrates that the SEC is considerin g the full weight of Section 404 on smalle rpublic companies," said BIO Presidentr and CEO Jim Greenwood.
Homebuilders' confidence in the housinyg market has fallen to its lowest levelsincs 1991, according to a monthly survety conducted by Wells Fargpo and the National Association of Home "Two big factors are coloring perception of the market right now -- rising salezs cancellations and substantial growth in inventories of both new and existinv homes," said NAHB Chief Economist David Seiders. More buyers are takingb a "wait-and-see attitude because of uncertainty about wher e the marketis headed," Seiders said. Plus, many speculatorws are leavingthe market.