Education and compassion are crucial to providing help to workers

As part of our fourth day of Suicide Awareness Week programming, Executive Director of the Construction Industry Alliance for Suicide Prevention, Sonya Bohmann, joined the America’s Work Force Union Podcast to discuss the goal and resources that CIASP provides for suicide awareness.

CIASP started in 2018, beginning as a volunteer-only program, with the goal of pushing the construction industry to a zero suicide rate. Earlier this year, Bohmann joined the Alliance as the first full-time employee of the organization. Bohmann has experience in the construction industry and experiences with losing someone to suicide. It is what led her to seek a change in the industry. She believes her position with CIASP is her “dream job” where she can positively impact the construction industry.

To build awareness and education, Bohmann said there must first be a culture change. This culture change would avoid the desire to never appear weak, which construction workers use as an excuse not to seek help. While that stigma is less of an issue now than in past years, it still exists. The goal at the end of the day is to make it OK, not to be OK, and seek help, Bohmann said.

Bohmann shared several national services and resources available to someone seeking help and statistics backing up proper education on the available resources. The warning signs that might demonstrate someone needing help are discussed in greater detail, and she shared an example of how to direct someone to seek help from one of her experiences. She emphasized that each situation is different and there’s no one answer for how to help someone. Understanding what signs to watch out for and knowing the tools available to direct someone to help is the key to the education that CIASP offers everyone.

For more information from CIASP, listen to the show above, then visit their website here.