Breaking the Silence: Leading the Charge on Mental Health in Construction
There’s a lot of sanctimonious and often performative activism out there when it comes to mental health. We’re sure we don’t need to tell you why that sucks.
So, instead we wanted to open up a real dialogue. Real insights with real people, that others can read and engage with at a level that isn’t someone telling you how to feel about the issue of mental health in the construction industry. But, rather - shared experiences and thoughts for a more valuable conversation.
According to MATES in Construction New Zealand, in 2023, the construction industry experienced 80 suspected suicides, marking the highest number since records began in 2007. Additionally, an estimated 1,628 workers required time off work due to self-harm incidents. The average age of those who died was 37 years.
These grim figures underscore the critical need for effective mental health and suicide prevention initiatives within the construction sector, but what do you think we can do about it?
We asked our own team if they would be willing to share some candid takes, as the construction industry in New Zealand faces particularly alarming mental health statistics. Our first conversation is with Dan, and he doesn’t beat around the bush…
"I used to say, ‘Why stress? Just spend that energy on getting things done and you won’t stress."
Dan admits that early in his career, mental health didn’t feel relevant - until he stepped out on his own to start BPM and it hit home.
“(When) I became a business owner, employer, and leader. I’d experienced leadership roles in the past from the nice secure place of employment. But this new role scared the crap out of me and I didn’t recognise the signs of mental health challenges – until the concept of unconscious stress was introduced to me by a friend.”
Dan had been building BPM from the ground up, working insane hours and was using some unhealthy coping mechanisms that he didn’t realise were so detrimental to his well-being at the time. It took a conversation with a mate to open him up to the concept that he was in a bit of denial about the fact he was suffering.
“Now I look back and I understood why I wasn’t sleeping well, why I was constantly clenching my jaw and why I was finding solace in whiskey each night.”
Dan now places a huge focus on health, wealth and relationships. His reason for this, for many of his choices as a leader - stem from not only his own experience of well-being and mental health and how it affected him, but also the sudden loss of a colleague.
"24 hours later I got a phone call telling me he’d gone."
In 2018, after identifying his own need for personal improvement, Dan had already begun to prioritise mental health in his business and walking a journey of mental health discovery. He was implementing measures to support himself and his team. But nothing prepared him for the loss of someone close, to suicide.
“I knew he’d recently taken his second round of leave due to stress and when I heard he was back at work, I’d thought it was very soon - but never mentioned anything... 24 hours before it happened, I’d spoken to him... we’d had our usual banter on the phone... and we parted ways.”
24 hours later, came a moment that changed everything. Dan found out his friend had taken his life.
“After I experienced that situation... I quickly became aware of the lack of tools, awareness and support around this topic, especially in the construction industry that is notorious for tough attitude and approach.”
"Lead by example. Show that it matters and drive the outcomes."
Dan believes change starts at the top.
“Listen,” he says. “Demonstrate that you’re willing to be involved.”
Whether it’s offering support or just being open to tough conversations, leadership needs to show up consistently.
And it doesn’t have to be grand gestures. Dan points to his own decision to stop drinking as a small but powerful example:
“Now, even just being ‘another person’ that isn’t drinking gives people the peer support they may be looking for – it can just be the small things.”
Leading by example is not only how Dan tries to encourage his team, and the industry - but also hold himself accountable.
You’ll often hear him talk about how doing hard things enables us to do hard things, and for him that change starts within and talking openly about his experiences.
“I believe it’s important that people demonstrate that they are willing to be involved. I have had a multitude of discussions as both the giver and receiver of care – just by being known that I am willing to talk empowers people to be willing to discuss small or large parts of the topic. It can be even as little as someone saying they need a change and giving help, looking for encouragement or to be pointed in the right direction. Approximately 12 months ago I stopped drinking alcohol, for a couple years prior to that I’d been reducing my intake, mainly because I gained a greater understanding of - and developed a greater want - for how I felt without it.”
"We’re still working the way we were - but we’re getting less done."
As a business owner, Dan recognised the current culture in our industry regarding mental health awareness and support was severely lacking, but also some deeper driving factors that perpetuated the cycle of neglect.
It’s easy to blame the cultural stigma around mental health in construction - and it is certainly part of the issue, however, he notes that when you look at the job itself, workload is a massive contributor to overwhelm.
“I used to think that it was purely the notorious ‘tough attitude and approach’ working environment that prevented real conversations happening - along with a lack of awareness and resources. But, more recently I’ve come to realise that the lack of productivity in the industry is a direct result of increased workloads, compliance and HSE - whilst sticking with old ways of doing things - has created an environment where we’re still working the way we were, but we’re getting less done. This creates pressure, stress, and an environment for mental health challenges to thrive.”
When talking to the ways we can improve as an industry, Dan gets real about how much we can truly do on our own and why technology could be the answer.
“(Sadly) I don’t see the awareness, focus, and discussion moving too much further. I think we may have hit a glass ceiling on how willing people in this industry are to be vulnerable. I see overall mental health improving with a greater rate of technology adoption and improved productivity. I see generations of people coming through that don’t just want technology, they expect it and that will lead to the current imbalance easing.”
“I think about my son. He’s 13 years old and tells me he wants to be in construction. On one hand I love this industry and encourage him to follow that path. On the other, I know it’s an industry that needs this change or he’s at risk”.
Reducing stigma – we’re stronger together.
Dan recognises we need to work together for continued awareness, easier access and promotion of support systems - and that technology is the key to working smarter, not harder.
We need to be reducing stress and the overwhelm of an ever-increasing workload - which he identifies as a key factor in promoting poor mental health within the industry. That’s not something we can tackle alone.
Dan is enacting change in improving well-being in our industry through BPM’s own well-being initiatives.
After seeing the benefits of a well-being programme, he decided to take it to the projects we manage. BPM then became the first project management company in New Zealand to establish a well-being package as a basic requirement for those who work alongside us.
Our Contractor Wellness Package was introduced to further position contractors as part of our extended team - and is a part of the BPM tender process as a non-price attribute. In May 2019, we also introduced a Contractor Wellness Survey to give the people working on our project sites a voice to communicate with us on their own well-being and what we can do together, as a team, to improve the overall wellbeing of our projects.
His other passion project is ConTech Solutions which was born out of his first-hand experience with loss and how our industry is demonstrably underperforming when it comes to managing our mental health as a result of stress on the job.
ConTech Solutions focuses on utilising technology - creating digital solutions that deliver sustainable, efficient, and resilient infrastructure - built to support the increasing demand of the job.
Ultimately, we are stronger together, and there are tools and processes we can implement that tackle the leading drivers of poor mental health within our industry. But, we pass the conversation over to you. What do you think?
If you’d like to talk to Dan about how we could be doing better as an industry and ways to improve, feel free to reach out.
Get Help & Support
In an emergency please dial 111 if you think you or someone else is at risk of harm
You can also, escort the person to the nearest hospital emergency department, or phone your local DHB Mental Health Crisis team
Visit www.mentalhealth.org.nz/get-help/in-crisis/ for more information.Free phone or text 1737 to communicate immediately with a counsellor
You can also reach out through the MATES in Construction Helpline: 0800 111 315
We are currently taking part in the MATES Long Lap Challenge - you can find out more about our progress here, or follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram for more!