The Building & Construction Trades Council of Greater New York has joined other industry leaders in the fight to bolster mental health and reduce construction’s high suicide rate.

On March 5, the NYC BCTC, which has membership consisting of local affiliates from 15 national and international unions, launched its Building Trades Peer Support Network with the goal of mitigating the adverse impacts of stress and lower suicide deaths among unionized construction workers in the city.

The program seeks to train 1,000 rank-and-file peer supporters throughout the trades, which represents 1% of the total share of 100,000 members, Gary LaBarbera, NYC BCTC president, told Construction Dive.

The issue

Construction work is hazardous. In 2024, the industry recorded a fatality rate of 9.2 deaths per 100,000 full-time equivalent workers, per the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

But the rate of deaths by suicide paints a much bleaker picture. In 2024, the fatality rate of construction workers dying by suicide was 41.9 per 100,000 workers, according to North America’s Building Trades Unions and CPWR — The Center for Construction Research and Training.

That was over four times the rate of on-the-job deaths in the industry. It also means construction is second only to mining for the highest suicide rate among all industries. 

The factors contributing to that epidemic are numerous, LaBarbera said. From the hazardous nature of the job requiring vigilance that can create stress, to project timelines creating uncertainty about one’s career future and physical strain from the demanding work — building trades work can be taxing.

On top of that, these jobs are often male-dominated, which comes with a stigma.

“Male construction workers don’t want to show that they have any feelings at all,” LaBarbera said. “We see ourselves as very rugged and tough.”

But that can prevent people from communicating when they need help, he said. Hence, the mantra of the initiative: “It’s not weak to speak.”

The program

BTPSN will use two training programs. The first, a two-hour session, is meant to educate members on suicide prevention and awareness. Once completed, union workers can decide whether to enroll in a follow-up, seven-hour class to become a peer, LaBarbera said.

Trained peers will be identifiable with stickers on their hard hats with slogans including “It’s not weak to speak,” to signal them as resource to other workers. Peers will be able to conduct risk assessment of their colleagues and refer medium or high-risk cases to designated support staff, who can then intervene.

In partnering with The Worker Institute at Cornell University, LaBarbera said stakeholders confirmed the best method for intervention was peer-to-peer, rather than a top-down approach. Empowering colleagues to check in on one another creates the safest environment for honesty, he said.

The New York Building Foundation, the charitable arm of the New York Building Congress, covered the cost of the BTPSN initiative and curriculum, per the release.

“This is more than an initiative; it is a fundamental part of our mission,” Elizabeth Velez, chair of the New York Building Foundation, said in the release. “Backed by our board and in lockstep with the BCTC and Cornell, we are taking decisive action to save lives.”