Helping to reduce suicide rates among construction workers is the theme of a talk on Friday to industry representatives looking to improve mental health across the industry.

Organisational wellbeing and suicide intervention specialist Andrea Newton is speaking about how to encourage positive, proactive wellbeing in construction, whose predominantly male workers have the highest suicide rates of any industry.

Ms Newton has been giving awareness talks this week to challenge the stigma of mental health issues in various industries.

She said: “Health and safety at work is about mental as well as physical wellbeing and yet organisations overlook health, especially mental health, and we know that an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure so by being proactive and educating people about wellbeing we can prevent cases of poor health.

“Nobody is immune. Every sector has challenges but we know that statistically construction has the highest rate of suicide and as it’s male dominated the risk increases. Currently anyone who supports or works with housing provision, debt collection, people who are vulnerable through change in state benefits and in education are believed to need more support.

“Most people who die by suicide are of working age – employers have a significant duty of care in our communities.”

Her talk takes place in Chapman room 1/2 at the University of Salford on Friday November 23, at 6.30pm.

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