Construction?

The topic of mental health has been newsworthy for several years. Worker health and wellness received coverage before the pandemic, but there has seemingly been an uptick since. Too often, the coverage is focused on protecting ourselves or our workforce. I have persistently warned my students regarding their professional aspirations. So many of them have their sites set on law school. Being an attorney can be significantly challenging, stressful, and even exhausting. We typically hear that the professions with the "highest rates" for suicide include:

1. Medical Doctors

2. Dentists

3. Police Officers

4. Veterinarians

5. Financial Services

6. Real Estate Agents

7. Electricians

8. Lawyers

9. Farmers

10. Pharmacists

These are listed on a Psychotherapy website, and they seem consistent with other news reports over the years. But, the societal challenge with suicide is deeper and broader.  The workers' compensation struggle with the subject is often focused on the legalities. Is suicide covered by workers' compensation? Must it occur at work to be considered for compensability? The answers are most often "it depends," and a litany of follow-up questions ensue. 

Suicide is so important that the government has implemented a three-digit shortcut for help, 988. It is a simple shortcut to assistance. See September is Awareness Month (September 2022). Too few know of this recent tool. And, far too many are committing self-harm.

I was surprised recently, when the headlines noted Construction workers are dying by suicide at an alarming rate. NBC News reported that "the construction industry has one of the highest suicide rates among professions." Certainly, there is significant exposure to danger in that profession. The data has borne that out for years. It is not included on the lists we so often see (above). 

So why did "an estimated 6,000 construction workers (die) by suicide in 2022? The NBC article notes that about 1,000 others "died from a construction work-related injury." That puts the suicide rate at 6 times the accidental death rate in this profession. Frankly both numbers seem unacceptably high. 

Some suggest that it is the stand-by explanation of "pressure" and "stress." There are significant demands and insufficient supplies of construction workers. Many projects are going on in various places and workers are in demand. The article notes that many construction workers put in "more than 20-hour days," and they face challenges with weather, deadlines, and distance from home and family.

At one project, the article describes a schedule of "two 60-hour weeks followed by a 50-hour week." That schedule is worked, they say, "for months at a time," without vacation time and other accouterments. Some complain they are working 19-hour days, and suffering from sleep deprivation and other burnout symptoms.

While I grasp that this is real in the construction trades, I wonder if these work demands are not themselves a trending force? There are 168 hours in a week. If you sleep 8 hours per night, that is 56, leaving you 112.  Give yourself 1/2 hour each for breakfast and dinner and assume you sneak lunch at work. That's another 7 hours, leaving you 105. Each day, showering and other self-care morning and night is another 7, leaving you 98. According to the Census, the average commute is 26 minutes per day, each way. If you are cramming all your work into 5 days, so no weekend commuting, that's 5 hours, leaving you 93. 

From that 93 hours, if you work 60, there are 33 left. That is less than 5 per day for you. That is without taking a day off, a seven-day work week. More likely, one weekend day you are off, which is about 14 hours of your "free time" (24-8-1-1). leaving you about 19 spread across the other 6 days, or 3 hours a day for getting a coffee, engaging in social interactions, or reading insightful and entertaining blog posts. 

I am guessing that kind of pace, on a consistent basis, might be challenging for construction workers. But is it worse there than for virtually any other worker? Is such a pace of 60-hour weeks not just as demanding in any profession or occupation? Is it the construction industry, or is it the incredible and consistent time demand that is becoming normal in that industry?

This construction concern is not a recent trend. The article notes that the inception of the alarm about these increasing rates began in 2016. There are efforts underway to build resources, coping, and acceptance. But, as in some other industries, there is a major obstacle in that workers are reluctant to accept that they have challenges and needs. There is a stigma attached to those who have such thoughts, and a fear of appearing weak in seeking help. There is a feeling that "there is an industry culture that discourages many from asking for help."

Short answer: There is no stigma in seeking help. Any short-term detriment you feel or perceive is far less damaging and intrusive than death.  

Nonetheless, the article concludes that the force in construction is stress. One construction superintendent believes that work is "legitimately wringing the life out of people." There is some suggestion that the results may drive substance abuse and a variety of life challenges. Stress can certainly drive behavior, can create stress, and can lead to self-care challenges. But, it appears to be manifesting particularly in construction.

The Centers for Disease Control provide some pretty stark statistics. The "suicide rate per 100,000 in the U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized working population":

was 32.0 among males and 8.0 among females.

Males are more apt to engage in self-harm. There are nine "major industry groups" in which suicide rates are "elevated":

Mining (males = 72.0);

Construction (males = 56.0; females = 10.4);

Other Services (e.g., automotive repair; males = 50.6; females = 10.4);

Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (males = 47.9; females = 15.0),

Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing, and Hunting (males = 47.9);

Transportation and Warehousing (males = 35.5);

Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services (males = 35.2);

Accommodation and Food Services (males = 34.7; females = 11.1); and

Health Care and Social Assistance (females = 8.5)

These are troubling numbers. They are likely surprising in at least some degree. While they support the concern for construction trades, perhaps there is a deeper meaning? What do these industry groups share? Why is there such a cluster of "elevate" rates? Why are men so much more prevalent in these statistics?

The simple point is that suicide will remain part of the challenge of the workplace. There are indicators here of systemic problems or challenges that bear addressing. It is an issue of safety, of health, and of productivity. The statistics are troubling, and the challenge is now.