Mining companies have joined hands with more than 1000 construction and business sites to help prevent suicide in an industry where it is six times more likely to lose a worker to suicide than a workplace accident.
This was the first time the mining sector has taken part in the annual MATES In Construction Fly the Flag Day.
Through the program, over 140,000 workers were equipped with life-saving skills to recognise when a co-worker is going through a tough time and how to step in.
MATES chief executive Chris Lockwood said, “We’re proud to have been able to partner with businesses and workers in the mining and energy sectors, who face similar pressures in unique work environments to access the support they need.”
The initiative has increasingly gained momentum every year, with the number of participating sites more than double that of last year.
“The construction industry, which is predominantly male, has a culture that can often leave workers feeling isolated and not knowing how to ask for help,” Lockwood said.
“Factors such as job insecurity, high work demands and financial stress, combined with relationship breakdowns, put workers in the construction industry at greater risk, and MATES will continue to do all we can to prevent suicides in this and similar high-risk industries.”
The program has been specifically designed, researched and implemented to address these issues.
Lockwood said, “It’s important for workers to know that there is somewhere and someone to turn to.”