News (Page 2)
The suicide rate among low-skilled male labourers is three times higher than the national average for men, according to figures by the ONS. Read more...
Exclusive: Burning Man, a utopia for guests, was hell for many workers
Staggeringly high suicide rate among Burning Man's seasonal workers is just one symptom of a toxic work environment.
August 24, 2018 | By: Keith A. Spencer and Nicole Karlis | Source: Salon
Every summer at the end of August, thousands of people from around the world make their pilgrimage to Burning Man, the signal counterculture festival of our epoch. Some come for a spiritual awakening, some merely to party and indulge, others to gawk at the spectacle. What started as a small summer-solstice gathering on San Francisco’s Baker Beach in 1986 has been refashioned as a major event drawing more than 75,000 festival-goers to the Black Rock Desert, a remote plateau desert two hours north of Reno, Nevada.
Describing Burning Man to someone who has never been is an exercise in superlatives. Given its freeform, anarchic nature, it is to some extent what you make of it, and it has a different meaning to different people. Some regard it as the provenance of obnoxious trust-funders and rich techies; others, as the terminus of 1960s-era hippiedom. At a minimum, Burning Man resembles a more libertine Coachella, a giant drug-driven wardrobe malfunction bursting with alternate theories of don’t-tread-on-me hedonism and solipsistic schemes for freer living. Read more...
Suicide in the Construction Industry: The Silent Killer
May 05, 2017 | By: Hannah Spruce | Source: EHS Today
In a 'tough guy,' male-dominated industry, workers with mental health issues often are overlooked or fail to seek help.
The construction and extraction industries have the second-highest rate of suicide – 53.3 per 100,000 workers, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Factors that have led to such a high rate of suicide in construction may include:
A role that often is isolating
Periods of unsteady employment depending on seasons
Mental health stigma
Sleep disruption
Chronic pain caused by manual labor
Travel which may separate workers from families and friends
Physical strain
Access to means of committing suicide like high places
Pressure to finish projects
Low or inconsistent pay
Poor working conditions
As a manager or supervisor, understanding the triggers of stress that can lead to depression and suicidal thoughts and feelings puts you in a position to help others. In addition, initiating mental health campaigns and providing training could assist workers with identifying the signs of stress. Read more...
Leaders Making a Difference
Cal Beyer: My Journey to Find Meaning After My Friend/Coworker's Suicide
July 15, 2016 | By: Emily Alvarez
Stories of lived experience can be used to fight the stigma of mental illness and suicide and to help get people involved in the movement. These journeys humanize the suicide prevention movement and help other people seek help. This series on lived experience is a great chance to highlight a loss survivor's story and the search for meaning after loss.
Cal Beyer is a friend of our CEO Sally Spencer-Thomas, as well as a friend to our organization. He lost a coworker last February and has been making meaning out of the loss ever since. This is his story.
From Action to Awareness- Integrating Mental Health Promotion and Suicide Prevention Into Wellness Practices
January/February 2017 Issue | By: Christian Moreno & Sally Spencer-Thomas | Source: Constructor Magazine
WHEN PEOPLE HEAR THE term “wellness,” they often think of physical wellness: sleeping eight hours a night, drinking 64 ounces of water a day and exercising for 30 minutes three times a week. Physical wellness is important, but it is only one dimension of overall wellness. Mental, social and emotional and spiritual conditions are key aspects of a person’s overall wellness.
Mental wellness involves always sharpening skills and committing to lifelong learning. It comes from a sense of inner responsibility to always finding ways to improve – increasing knowledge, asking critical questions, trying new things and advancing skill sets. Social and emotional wellness focuses on keeping relationships and emotional well-being intact. It’s about conflict resolution, self- esteem and coping skills. Finally, spiritual wellness involves committing to something larger – participating in a faith community, volunteering to serve the common good, standing up for injustice or appreciating nature.
When implementing wellness into the construction industry, the conventional wisdom has been, “Don’t invest in it” or “It has little impact.” These perceived challenges are exacerbated by the paradigm shared by American society: mental health issues are personal and taboo. Combine the cultural realities of the construction industry with the perceived financial challenges of investing in mental health and you get a recipe for disaster. It’s time to change the mindset.
As with any preventive maintenance process, wellness needs attention over the long haul. Unfortunately, when people are in crisis mode, wellness practices are often the first to go. And, just like when you neglect to change the oil in your car, the end cost is higher. When adversity hits, people will be in a much stronger position to maintain high performance, reframe disappointment and recover from trauma if they have reservoirs of resilience and mental health resources to rely on. Arguably, the preventive approach is the most effective way to save a greater number of lives from suicide. Read more...
Construction + Suicide Prevention: 10 Action Steps Companies Can Take To Save Lives
January/February 2017 Issue | By: Sally Spencer-Thomas | Source: CFMA Building Profits
The construction industry is at heightened risk for mental health problems, substance abuse, and suicide. These conditions can be devastating to employees and their families, and can be very costly and disruptive to workplaces. For these reasons, a comprehensive and sustained strategy for mental health promotion and suicide prevention is needed. This guide is a call to action for all those ready to implement tactics to improve the mental health of their employees and ultimately save lives.
The UPSTREAM, MIDSTREAM, DOWNSTREAM Parable
Imagine you are walking along a river and hear a cry for help from someone drowning. You are startled but energized as you dive into the water to save him. Using all of your strength, you pull him to shore and start administering CPR. Your adrenaline is racing as he starts to regain consciousness.
Just as you are about get back on your feet, another frantic call comes from the river. You can’t believe it! You dive back into the river and pull out a woman who also needs life-saving care. Now a bit frazzled but still thrilled that you have saved two lives in one day, you mop the sweat from your brow.
When you turn around, however, you see more drowning people coming down the river, one after another. You shout out to all the other people around you to help. Now there are several people in the river with you – pulling drowning people out left and right.
One of the rescuers swims out to the drowning group and tries to start teaching them how to tread water. This strategy helps some, but not all. Everyone looks at each other, completely overwhelmed, wondering when this will stop.
Finally, you stand up and start running upstream. Another rescuer glares at you and shouts, “Where are you going? There are so many people drowning; we need everyone here to help!” To which you reply, “I’m going upstream to find out why so many people are falling into the river.”
When it comes to suicide prevention and mental health promotion, most of the focus is on pulling people out of the water. Many find themselves exhausted while resources are depleted, and everyone keeps throwing in the life preservers and performing other heroic deeds. Read more...
Construction Industry Unites to Tackle Suicide
December 27, 2016 | By: Sean Forbes | Source: Bloomberg Law
At construction conferences in San Diego and Hawaii, Asif Choudury had a great time getting together with Bruce Tabler, both board members of the Construction Financial Management Association.
Choudury remembered carousing with Tabler and other colleagues when they were at the CFMA’s summer 2013 conference in San Diego, “clowning around til 4 in the morning, overloading some poor guy with a rickshaw” in the city’s Gaslamp Quarter. “There was hootin’ and hollerin’, just having a good time, no real issues. We had some good food, good times.”
By November of that year, his friend was no longer in the joking mood. And when Choudury, president of Bahar Consulting LLC in Washington, learned several months later that his friend had taken his own life, he was completely unprepared.“It was devastating to me,” Choudury told Bloomberg BNA. “It really was. I was in complete shock.”
Getting to Zero
How Tabler died is far too common in the construction industry. Across all industries, the suicide rate in the construction and extraction industries (53.3 suicide deaths out of a population of 100,000 individuals) is second only to farming/fishing/forestry (84.5), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a report released last summer. The CDC report was the first to look at suicide rates by industry.
Although men outpace women for the raw numbers of suicides in construction and extraction, those two industries have the highest rate of suicides for women (134.3 out of every 100,000 women), according to a study of suicides by industry in Colorado. (subscribe to see full article)
Suicide is Taking its Toll in Construction- What we need to Know to Recognize its Dangers, and How to Prevent It
October - December 2016 Issue | Source: Painters & Allied Trades Journal
Working in the building and construction trades is a challenging career. There are high productivity demands on the workforce to meet deadlines, as well as working conditions that can often be an extreme danger if strict safety guidelines aren’t followed.
According to a July report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the stress from these factors, coupled with several others, are taking their toll on the construction workforce in the worst possible way. The suicide
rate for construction workers is the second highest of all industries (farming, fishing and forestry was first). The report showed that 53.3 construction workers out of every 100,000 fall to suicide. A stark difference to the overall suicide rate of 12.93 people per 100,000 in the United States.
WHY CONSTRUCTION?
Before we can understand why suicide is so prevalent in construction, let’s take a look at the national picture. According to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention:
According to the last figures available from 2014, 42,773 Americans died by suicide (an average of 117 suicides per day)
For every suicide, there are 25 attempts
Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States
Suicide Prevention Resources are Available
December 2016 Issue | By: Bob Swanson |Source: International Union of Painters and Allied Trades
Knowing more about mental illness can help you, your loved ones, and co-workers.
As a member of the construction industry and a father who lost a son to suicide, I appreciate this opportunity to share information with members of the IUPAT.
A little background about my journey with this topic: Our oldest son, Michael, lived with a brain disease by the name of bipolar disorder. This disease led to his death by suicide at the age of 33 on March 13, 2009. By all physical appearances, the mental anguish that he experienced was usually not visible. As part of my healing process and in honor of my oldest son, I chose
to retire in August of 2015 so that I could devote more time and energy to reducing the shame of mental illness and, through educating others, reducing the incidence of suicide. In that regard, I have been a speaker and instructor at various venues for NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Minnesota.
Most of all, I want people to know that there is help available, particularly since one in four adults will experience a mental illness each year and the most common mental illnesses are depression and anxiety disorder. I hope the following information aids in understanding how common mental health issues are and ways to help yourself, loved ones and co-workers.
A few facts regarding suicide in the United States:
In 2014, 42,773 Americans died by suicide. This is an increase of 24 percent since 1999.
Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death. It exceeds deaths by traffic accidents or homicides.
Suicide is the second leading cause of death among persons 15 to 24.
50% of all suicides are associated with alcohol and drugs.
The main risk factors of suicide are depression and substance abuse.
It is estimated that there are up to 25 suicide attempts for each suicide death. Many attempted suicides are unreported.
20% who die by suicide made a previous attempt.
75% who die by suicide are male.
2016 GARY E. BIRD HORIZON AWARD PRESENTED TO THE CONSTRUCTION SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE WORKPLACE TASK FORCE; NATIONAL ALLIANCE FOR SUICIDE PREVENTION
November 7, 2016 | Source: IRMI
Orlando, FL — The Gary E. Bird Horizon Award was presented at the 36th IRMI Construction Risk Conference (CRC) to the Construction Subcommittee of the Workplace Task Force; National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention. This award recognized the committee for their innovative suicide prevention program.
The committee developed and implemented the award-winning “Breaking the Silence: Suicide Prevention in the Construction Workplace” program to address mental health and suicide prevention in the construction industry. The goal of this program is to increase communication, reduce fear/stigma, engage leadership and provide a roadmap for the construction industry to prevent suicide.
The Gary E. Bird Horizon Award, sponsored by Travelers, is presented annually by IRMI to recognize a demonstrated commitment to improving construction risk management through the implementation of innovative, cost-effective, and efficient risk management techniques.
“Few of us were hired and promoted into management because of our capabilities to identify and address mental illness,” said Joe Tracy, President of Travelers Inland Marine. “This approach is very helpful at getting wide spread adoption across any company’s management ranks and most importantly helps ensure the effective implementation of the program.”
The other finalists for the award were Shawn Connick, Director of Safety for Charles Pankow Builders Ltd.; Robert J. DeSmidt, CPA, CFO/risk manager for Klinger Companies, Inc.; Tommy Erhman, Project Executive for Gilbane Federal; and Dwayne Jeffery, Senior EHS Transportation Manager for Odebrecht.
Read more about the winning submission and view the committee’s flyer.
Learn more about the Gary E. Bird Horizon Award at https://www.irmi.com/conferences/crc/awards/horizon/howto.aspx.
AEC Professionals at high risk for suicide, but preemptive approaches can help
October 4, 2016 | By: Kevin Wilcox | Source: Civil Engineering
A CDC report reveals that employees in the architecture, engineering, and construction fields are at high risk for suicide. Assistance programs can make a difference.
October 4, 2016—When the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released suicide statistics by profession earlier this year, the nexus of vocations that make up the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) professions ranked uncomfortably high on the list.
The architecture and engineering professions ranked fifth, with a rate of 32 per 100,000 workers. That rate is higher than for such emergency responders as police officers and firefighters, and nearly double the rate of many other office professions. The construction industry, which was grouped with mining by the CDC, ranked second with a rate of 53 suicides per 100,000 workers. Taken together, the AEC suicide rates are 85 per 100,000 workers, a number that matches the top category, forestry and agriculture.
Professionals who work in suicide prevention note that although there are marked differences between the construction industry and the architecture and engineering professions, there are a significant number of similarities, as well, especially when it comes to suicide prevention.
"We say that in many of the high-risk industries [it is] both the demographics of who is working there and also the nature of the work," says Sally Spencer-Thomas, Psy.D., the chief executive officer of the Carson J Spencer Foundation in Denver and the founder of workingminds.org, an organization dedicated to suicide prevention in the workplace. The group offers training to companies interested in making psychological safety a priority, and has published a free guide specifically for the construction industry. (The foundation is named in honor of Spencer-Thomas's brother, Carson J. Spencer, who committed suicide in 2004.) Read more...
How a local construction company is preventing suicide
September 1, 2016 | By: Kyle Dyer, KUSA | Source: 9News Colorado
DENVER - What you do for a living can make you more at risk for suicide.
People who work in isolation or have unsteady employment like in the agriculture and forestry industries are at the greatest risk. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently reported there are 85 suicides per 100,000 workers in those fields.
Construction workers, carpenters and electricians also have a high risk for suicide (CDC: 53 suicides per 100,000).
When you consider how many construction projects are going on throughout the Denver metro area, the statistics are even more alarming.
"We've changed our culture," RK Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Jon Kinning said. Read more...
The AEC Industry's Deadly Problem
August 31, 2016 | By: Leah Sottile | Source: Architect Magazine
Architecture and construction rank high on a recent report listing suicides by occupation. Are these professions doing enough to ensure the mental health of practitioners and students?
In July, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released a report that set off alarm bells in the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry. In the report, the CDC concluded that, among all occupational groups in the U.S., the construction and extraction industry had the second-highest rate of suicide, and architecture and engineering the fifth-highest. (The farming, fishing, and forestry occupational group topped the list.) The report, which compiled data from 17 U.S. states in 2012, tells a story that many in AEC know too well: The industry’s high-stakes, competitive nature can put undue pressure on the mental health of everyone involved, from students to practitioners.
The CDC estimates that, in the U.S., suicide costs the public and employers more than $44.6 billion annually in combined medical and work-loss expenses. But the issue extends well beyond suicide. Depression and anxiety, and even the symptoms of adult ADHD, can threaten productivity in the workplace and classroom and, most importantly, the well-being of students and employees. According to recent research from the Harvard University Medical School, nearly two in 10 Americans between the ages of 15 and 54 said they experienced symptoms of a mental health issue in the prior month. Read more...
Part 1: A hidden epidemic: Construction suicide data draws industry crisis into the spotlight
August 22, 2016 | By: Emily Reiffer | Source: Construction Dive
One afternoon in 2014, a distressed and despondent RK Mechanical employee gave away his tools to his coworkers. Looking back, managers realized he was saying goodbye. They didn't realize it soon enough.
Later that night, the worker killed himself.
"Nobody was really prepared to notice it, acknowledge it, deal with it, or ask him what was wrong," RK Director of Marketing and Communications Heather Gallien said. "It was an instance that could've been averted had staff been better prepared."
While pockets of companies and people aiming to raise awareness of suicide issues in the construction industry have emerged, a recent Center for Disease Control and Prevention report provided concrete data that industry experts have said is impossible to ignore. The study found that across all industries, construction has the second-highest suicide rate and highest total number of suicides.
Now that personal stories have combined with hard fact, more companies and construction groups are taking notice of a dark reality that has been under the shadow of stigma and lack of awareness. With that increased attention, a small group of industry leaders are starting to incorporate new policies, programs and training to ensure the health of their employees. Read more...
Part 2: A hidden epidemic: How suicide prevention efforts can transform construction industry culture
August 22, 2016 | By: Emily Peiffer | Source: Construction Dive
Construction's high suicide rates and the importance of prevention efforts are just beginning to reach the radar of industry leaders, but the path to achieving that awareness was long and arduous amid obstacles of stigma and lack of awareness. However, with a newfound prevalence in the mainstream industry consciousness, some businesses are starting to transform their company culture and offer employee resources to drive change.
The long road to raising awareness
Despite efforts of suicide prevention activists, most of the construction industry didn't start to take notice of the issue of high suicide rates until the past year, according to Sally Spencer-Thomas, CEO and co-founder of the Carson J. Spencer Foundation. Now that the word is starting to get out, however, she no longer has to knock on every door to try to find interest. "Now they're just coming in the door," she said.
Cal Beyer, executive committee member of the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention and director of risk management for paving contractor Lakeside Industries, previously worked in the construction insurance industry and said he has attempted to raise the status of mental health issues for his entire career. However, he struggled to capture the attention of industry leaders for years. "No one wanted to talk about mental health. I think people don't feel equipped," he said. Read more...