Saving mates The Mates in Construction (MIC) charity organisation uses the Australian tradition of 'mateship' to achieve
Posted: Mon May 02, 2022 8:20 am
Saving mates
The Mates in Construction (MIC) charity organisation uses the Australian tradition of
'mateship' to achieve one simple but important purpose: reduce suicide incidence in the
building and construction industry. 559 It's an important goal. An average of 190
construction workers take their lives each year: six times more than die from a
workplace accident. One reason for this is the building and construction industry
employs a lot of young males. Death by suicide accounts for a third of all deaths among
young Australian males, who are three times more likely to die from intentional self-
harm than females. Young male construction workers are more than twice as likely to
die by suicide than other young Australian men.
To change this, MIC operates from the premise that suicide is everyone's business'
and that everyone can be part of the solution. The organisation's goals are: to raise
awareness of suicide and of ways to prevent it; to build the capacity of individuals to
help themselves and of workplaces and communities to help people who need support;
and to provide help by connecting workers to practical and useful services These
include employee assistance programs, financial counselling, drug and alcohol
services, grief counselling, and family and relationship counselling.
The two key components of the MIC program are training and support. Training is usedto raise awareness of the social problem of suicide within the industry, the contributingfactors, and the ways in which the problem can be addressed. General awarenesstraining is delivered on building sites to at least 80 per cent of workers. Connectortraining, provided to people who volunteer to be Connectors, trains them to keepsomeone who is in a crisis safe and connect them to professional help. ASSIST trainingteaches ASSIST workers how to talk to someone who is contemplating suicide, how tohelp them stay safe, and address their worries and concerns, and how to help themdevelop a sate plan .Support includes an assistance hotline, case management processes for connectingpeople to support services, and onsite support from field officers who visit constructionsites Field officers also provide support after critical incidents and accidents, or aîterthe suicide of a worker or a worker's family member. In these instances, they focus onhelping people deal with grief and emotional reactions to trauma, and on helpingConnectors and ASSIST workers to identify and support people in need of help.
The two key components of the MIC program are training and support. Training is used
to raise awareness of the social problem of suicide within the industry, the contributing
factors, and the ways in which the problem can be addressed. General awareness
training is delivered on building sites to at least 80 per cent of workers. Connector
training, provided to people who volunteer to be Connectors, trains them to keep
someone who is in a crisis safe and connect them to professional help. ASSIST training
teaches ASSIST workers how to talk to someone who is contemplating suicide, how to
help them stay safe, and address their worries and concerns, and how to help them
develop a sate plan .
Support includes an assistance hotline, case management processes for connecting
people to support services, and onsite support from field officers who visit construction
sites Field officers also provide support after critical incidents and accidents, or aîter
the suicide of a worker or a worker's family member. In these instances, they focus on
helping people deal with grief and emotional reactions to trauma, and on helping
Connectors and ASSIST workers to identify and support people in need of help.
A big part of MIC's work is helping workers and the industry to change some of thefactors that contribute to suicide in the industry. This includes recognising that theuncertain nature of employment in building and construction creates a lack of job andfinancial security that causes stress and anxiety. MIC also addresses perceptions andbehaviours within the industry that make them less likely to seek help. These includereluctance to talk about feelings and emotions, perceptions that individuals whoacknowledge they are having problems will be perceived as not manly', and the beliefthat individuals who intend to suicide don't discuss it with others or show signs ofneeding helpChanging such entrenched cultural attitudes isn't easy, but by 2020, the MIC programhad trained nearly 210,000 people and managed over 95 cases It has also developedthe Mates in Mining, Mates in Energy and Mates in New Zealand programs to providesimilar support to workers in the mining and energy fields, and in New Zealand.
A big part of MIC's work is helping workers and the industry to change some of the
factors that contribute to suicide in the industry. This includes recognising that the
uncertain nature of employment in building and construction creates a lack of job and
financial security that causes stress and anxiety. MIC also addresses perceptions and
behaviours within the industry that make them less likely to seek help. These include
reluctance to talk about feelings and emotions, perceptions that individuals who
acknowledge they are having problems will be perceived as not manly', and the belief
that individuals who intend to suicide don't discuss it with others or show signs of
needing help
Changing such entrenched cultural attitudes isn't easy, but by 2020, the MIC program
had trained nearly 210,000 people and managed over 95 cases It has also developed
the Mates in Mining, Mates in Energy and Mates in New Zealand programs to provide
similar support to workers in the mining and energy fields, and in New Zealand.
1. identify 3 key management concepts
2. reflect & identify 3 learning insights from this case
3. What types of change is Mates in Construction trying to facilitate?
4. How is MIC facilitating organisational development on building and
construction sites?
5. What barriers might prevent MIC from successfully fostering change? How
could those barriers be overcome?
6. How could mining and construction companies reduce the stresses
experienced by workers in the industry?
The Mates in Construction (MIC) charity organisation uses the Australian tradition of
'mateship' to achieve one simple but important purpose: reduce suicide incidence in the
building and construction industry. 559 It's an important goal. An average of 190
construction workers take their lives each year: six times more than die from a
workplace accident. One reason for this is the building and construction industry
employs a lot of young males. Death by suicide accounts for a third of all deaths among
young Australian males, who are three times more likely to die from intentional self-
harm than females. Young male construction workers are more than twice as likely to
die by suicide than other young Australian men.
To change this, MIC operates from the premise that suicide is everyone's business'
and that everyone can be part of the solution. The organisation's goals are: to raise
awareness of suicide and of ways to prevent it; to build the capacity of individuals to
help themselves and of workplaces and communities to help people who need support;
and to provide help by connecting workers to practical and useful services These
include employee assistance programs, financial counselling, drug and alcohol
services, grief counselling, and family and relationship counselling.
The two key components of the MIC program are training and support. Training is usedto raise awareness of the social problem of suicide within the industry, the contributingfactors, and the ways in which the problem can be addressed. General awarenesstraining is delivered on building sites to at least 80 per cent of workers. Connectortraining, provided to people who volunteer to be Connectors, trains them to keepsomeone who is in a crisis safe and connect them to professional help. ASSIST trainingteaches ASSIST workers how to talk to someone who is contemplating suicide, how tohelp them stay safe, and address their worries and concerns, and how to help themdevelop a sate plan .Support includes an assistance hotline, case management processes for connectingpeople to support services, and onsite support from field officers who visit constructionsites Field officers also provide support after critical incidents and accidents, or aîterthe suicide of a worker or a worker's family member. In these instances, they focus onhelping people deal with grief and emotional reactions to trauma, and on helpingConnectors and ASSIST workers to identify and support people in need of help.
The two key components of the MIC program are training and support. Training is used
to raise awareness of the social problem of suicide within the industry, the contributing
factors, and the ways in which the problem can be addressed. General awareness
training is delivered on building sites to at least 80 per cent of workers. Connector
training, provided to people who volunteer to be Connectors, trains them to keep
someone who is in a crisis safe and connect them to professional help. ASSIST training
teaches ASSIST workers how to talk to someone who is contemplating suicide, how to
help them stay safe, and address their worries and concerns, and how to help them
develop a sate plan .
Support includes an assistance hotline, case management processes for connecting
people to support services, and onsite support from field officers who visit construction
sites Field officers also provide support after critical incidents and accidents, or aîter
the suicide of a worker or a worker's family member. In these instances, they focus on
helping people deal with grief and emotional reactions to trauma, and on helping
Connectors and ASSIST workers to identify and support people in need of help.
A big part of MIC's work is helping workers and the industry to change some of thefactors that contribute to suicide in the industry. This includes recognising that theuncertain nature of employment in building and construction creates a lack of job andfinancial security that causes stress and anxiety. MIC also addresses perceptions andbehaviours within the industry that make them less likely to seek help. These includereluctance to talk about feelings and emotions, perceptions that individuals whoacknowledge they are having problems will be perceived as not manly', and the beliefthat individuals who intend to suicide don't discuss it with others or show signs ofneeding helpChanging such entrenched cultural attitudes isn't easy, but by 2020, the MIC programhad trained nearly 210,000 people and managed over 95 cases It has also developedthe Mates in Mining, Mates in Energy and Mates in New Zealand programs to providesimilar support to workers in the mining and energy fields, and in New Zealand.
A big part of MIC's work is helping workers and the industry to change some of the
factors that contribute to suicide in the industry. This includes recognising that the
uncertain nature of employment in building and construction creates a lack of job and
financial security that causes stress and anxiety. MIC also addresses perceptions and
behaviours within the industry that make them less likely to seek help. These include
reluctance to talk about feelings and emotions, perceptions that individuals who
acknowledge they are having problems will be perceived as not manly', and the belief
that individuals who intend to suicide don't discuss it with others or show signs of
needing help
Changing such entrenched cultural attitudes isn't easy, but by 2020, the MIC program
had trained nearly 210,000 people and managed over 95 cases It has also developed
the Mates in Mining, Mates in Energy and Mates in New Zealand programs to provide
similar support to workers in the mining and energy fields, and in New Zealand.
1. identify 3 key management concepts
2. reflect & identify 3 learning insights from this case
3. What types of change is Mates in Construction trying to facilitate?
4. How is MIC facilitating organisational development on building and
construction sites?
5. What barriers might prevent MIC from successfully fostering change? How
could those barriers be overcome?
6. How could mining and construction companies reduce the stresses
experienced by workers in the industry?