Workplace deaths increased in Minnesota in 2017 for the third year in a row. The state Department of Labor and Industry reports 101 fatal workplace injuries last year, up from 92 in 2016 and 74 the year before that. Officials say nearly half the workplace deaths in 2017 involved transportation, and more than half were workers 55 and older. Deaths in the retail sector increased, as did those caused by violence from persons or animals. But construction fatalities dropped.