Commercial Observer

SUICIDE AND MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES—UNSPOKEN TOPICS IN THE CONSTRUCTION BIZ

By: Lauren Elkies Schram

Last year, an ironworker named Gary Russo, dubbed the “Second Avenue Sinatra” by the tabloids for singing karaoke during his lunch breaks while working on the Second Avenue subway line, took his own life.

If you saw him perform or read about him five years ago, this news might have come as a shock; one can still find clips of Russo sweetly crooning “Summer Wind” on YouTube to passersby on the Upper East Side. But after he hung himself last August, it became clear that Russo had been growing ever more depressed over life circumstances, including a breakup. Read More