Risky business: how our ‘macho’ construction culture is killing tradies -by www.theconversation.com/au
The construction and building industries can be dangerous places to work. These jobs not only pose risks to a person’s physical health, but can threaten their mental health, too. In Australia, “tradies” make up less than one-third of all people in employment, but represent 58% of serious claims for workers’ compensation. Construction ranks in the top three for industries with the highest workrelated injury or illness and deaths related to traumatic injury. While accidents and disease can be put down to the occupational risk of working on construction sites, the disproportionate rates of mental illness seen in this industry cannot. Construction workers are overrepresented in suicide rates in Australia, and this urgently needs to be addressed. The physically demanding work tradespeople do has long been associated with male toughness and “macho” workplace cultures. But it’s this toxic mentality that’s largely responsible for tradies’ poor mental health.
The stats on tradies’ mental health and suicide Research shows workers in construction are at a higher risk of experiencing mental health problems than workers in other professions. In 2012 in Australia, a total of 169 men working in the construction industry committed suicide. A 2017 report indicated the suicide rate is 24.2 per 100,000 male construction workers compared to 13.9 per 100,000 males in all other occupations – almost double.
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