(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - Bechtel and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) have announced a new, multi-year partnership dedicated to saving lives in the construction community lost to suicide. 

Bechtel’s $7 million commitment to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention will provide critical resources and programming to 500,000 U.S. Construction Workers over the next five years through industry-specific programs and resources developed by Bechtel and AFSP.

The commitment to AFSP to fund the effort is the largest-ever pledge received by AFSP and the largest single donation ever made by the Bechtel Group Foundation.

Bechtel CEO Brendan Bechtel said: “This is the start of a long-term, sustained effort to lift up the whole construction community.  We want to see mental health become as much of a priority as physical safety in our industry.  It’s our belief that addressing suicide in construction is as vital as wearing a hard hat on site.  This is the next frontier in taking care of each other.”

North America’s Building Trades Unions (NABTU) President Sean McGarvey, who spoke at the Washington, D.C. news conference, said: “All of us who work in construction have seen gains in physical safety that were once unimaginable, become the standard for success.  It’s time to bring the same mindset, resources and innovation to the issue of mental health and suicide prevention.”

The Construction Industry has one of the highest suicide rates of any profession in the U.S.

In fact, the number of suicides in the industry is nearly five times higher than the number of lives lost in jobsite safety incidents, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, respectively.

The initiative will leverage Bechtel’s industry knowledge and reach - in combination with AFSP’s expertise in research, education, and effective prevention strategies, as well as its national network of local chapters.

Bechtel welcomes participation from others in the industry, as this partnership forms a Construction Working Group and a first-ever senior advisory council to help guide the effort.

To Directly Access This Labor News Report In Its Entirety, Go To: Bechtel and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Partner to Prevent Construction Worker Su | Bechtel