Construction industry CEOs join together to combat high rates of suicide among profession
Suicides among construction workers at 'alarming' level
Construction workers are dying by suicide at an alarming rate. And according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the suicide rate among male construction workers is 75 percent higher than the general population. Industry CEOs are joining forces to confront the problem.
ATLANTA - Construction workers are dying by suicide at an alarming rate, and now companies and associations are joining forces to find solutions and provide resources.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the suicide rate among male construction workers is 75% higher than the general population.
Second only to mining, construction has the highest suicide rate by profession in the country, and CDC data show the risk of dying by suicide for construction workers is six times greater than that of dying on the job.
"It’s alarming. It’s disturbing. The most valuable thing a construction firm has is its people," Mike Dunham, CEO of Associated General Contractors of Georgia, told FOX 5.
Dunham has worked in the industry for more than four decades and believes culture may be to blame for the shocking figures.
"We tend to be a pretty male-dominated industry. We man up, we don’t ask for help, and we also are not one to look at someone and go, ‘Are you in trouble?’" Dunham said.
David Wessin is the Vice President of Risk Engineering for American Global. He spends much of his time speaking with workers about occupational hazards on job sites. For most of his four-decade career in construction, that focus has been on the physical risks of working in construction. In recent years, he’s seen a shift to a focus on mental health and suicide prevention.
"That’s what we focused on in our industry for a number of years: the occupational hazards associated with construction work. Now the coin has flipped," Wessin told FOX 5.
CEOs from nine of the industry’s largest firms recently created an advisory council to find solutions to the alarming statistics surrounding suicide among construction workers.
According to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP), the council will evaluate available resources and design new initiatives to support construction professionals during quarterly meetings. The council was created after Bechtel, a leading construction firm, made the largest pledge in history to the AFSP.
"To have that amount of money available now to develop more and more resources for the construction industry, I think it is going to play a huge part in making a difference," Wessin said.
For Mike Dunham, the leadership from the industry’s top brass is an encouraging sign of what’s to come. "Anytime a top-level CEO makes this a priority, it helps move the needle… we have to teach people how to identify the problem, that it’s okay to ask for help, and then provide the resources," he said.
Both Dunham and Wessin hope construction professionals see this influx of resources and feel they are not alone.
"This is one of those things where you just can’t wait another moment. Take action. There’s so much more available now than there was just a few years ago," Dunham told FOX 5.
If you or someone you love is contemplating suicide, help is available. If you are in crisis, call or text the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988 or text ‘TALK’ to 741741.