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Dive brief:
- Executives from America’s top contractors have come together to form a new CEO advisory council that will guide an industry-wide effort to steer and bring down. high suicide rate among construction workersBechtel announced Thursday.
- In addition to Bechtel, leaders from Fluor, Turner Construction Co., North America’s Building Trades Unions, Kiewit, Clark Construction, DPR Construction, Skanska and Stanley Black & Decker make up the board.
- The group will bring knowledge and expertise to support an initiative launched earlier this year by Reston, Virginia-based Bechtel. In March, the contractor committed to $7 million over five years American Foundation for Suicide Prevention to adapt new programs for the construction sector.
Diving knowledge:
The Suicide mortality rate among construction workers was more than double the national rate (46.1 vs. 19.5 per 100,000 full-time employees) in 2022, and five times more construction workers committed suicide than were killed on the job that year, the most recent data set available.
When CEO Brendan Bechtel announced the company’s pledge to AFSP, the largest in the foundation’s history, he described the construction suicide statistics as “shameful.”
With the donation, AFSP aims to reach half a million construction workers over the next five years through industry-specific programs and resources aimed at increasing suicide and mental health awareness.
The council itself will meet quarterly to assess current mental health programs, identify gaps in support and design new initiatives to address the needs of construction professionals. Efforts will include enhanced training programs, awareness campaigns and better access to health resources.
“Just like with workplace safety, nothing is proprietary when it comes to saving lives,” Bechtel said in the statement. “The more we can involve a broad group of leaders and collaborate solutions, the more effective we will be in offering our people the support they need. We owe it to them, our colleagues and their families to find solutions and prevent these tragedies.”
The founding members of the council are:
- Don Allan Jr., chairman and CEO of Stanley Black & Decker, based in New Britain, Connecticut.
- Brencan Bechtel, president and CEO of Bechtel.
- David Constable, president and CEO of Irving, Texas-based Fluor.
- Peter Davoren, chairman, president and CEO of Turner Construction Co., based in New York City.
- Richard Kennedy, president and CEO of Skanska USA, based in New York City.
- Rick Lanoha, president and CEO of Omaha, Nebraska-based Kiewit.
- Sean McGarvey, President of NABTU, based in Washington, DC
- Robert Moser Jr., CEO of Bethesda, Maryland-based Clark Construction.
- George Pfeffer, CEO of DPR Construction, based in Redwood City, California.
