Every May, the calendar reminds us it is Mental Health Awareness Month. We all pause to acknowledge that mental health matters. And then, too often, June arrives – and once again there is silence.

I have been writing and speaking about mental health in construction for several years now, and if you have read any of those pieces, you know this is not a topic I raise because it is comfortable. I raise it because the alternative: staying quiet costs lives.

We know this industry has a problem. Construction workers continue to die by suicide at a rate far higher than the general population. In fact, suicide remains one of the leading causes of death in our industry – higher than many of the physical hazards we spend every day training to prevent.

Think about that for a moment.

Think about the hours we dedicate to fall protection. The toolbox talks. The signage. The pre-task plans. The near-miss reporting. The constant reminders to tie off, wear the gear and watch each other’s backs.

All of it matters.

But the single greatest threat to many of our workers’ lives still happens largely in silence, behind the armor of grit and toughness this industry has worn for generations. That should concern every one of us.

Because if there were any other jobsite hazard causing this level of loss, we would not tolerate it. We would not shrug our shoulders and call it unfortunate. We would not put up a poster once a year and move on.

We would build a mitigation plan. We would train for it. We would talk about it openly. We would attack it with urgency.

Mental health deserves the same response.

At EDiS, we often say we are Building What Matters. The longer I spend in this business, the more convinced I am that this idea must extend far beyond the structures we deliver. Yes, we build schools. We build offices. We build hospitals. We build spaces where communities live and work.

But if we are not also building healthier people, healthier teams, and healthier workplaces, then we are missing one of the most important responsibilities we have as leaders.

Because mental wellness is not separate from safety. It is safety.

We spend our days emphasizing PPE, hazard prevention, and physical safety on our jobsites. But the truth is, the most important PPE any worker brings to the job each day is their full self – mentally, emotionally and physically.

A worker can be physically protected and mentally exhausted. Physically present and emotionally isolated. Surrounded by coworkers and still feel completely alone.

And too often, no one sees the warning signs until the struggle becomes a crisis. That has to change.

For years, our industry has mistaken silence for resilience. We have treated “pushing through” as a badge of honor. We have celebrated toughness without always recognizing the damage that can come from never allowing people space to admit when they are not okay.

But silence is not resilience. Resilience is speaking up. Resilience is reaching out. Resilience is asking a coworker, “Are you okay?” and meaning it – then staying long enough to listen to the answer.

That kind of culture does not happen on its own. It has to be built intentionally, just like any other safety program.

And it starts with leadership.

Mental health cannot be a once-a-year HR initiative or a poster in the break room during the month of May. It has to become part of how we lead every day.

It means training supervisors not just to identify physical risk, but behavioral changes. It means making sure employees know what resources are available before they are in crisis. It means creating benefits that support real life. It means managing workloads and expectations in a way that recognizes burnout is real. And it means creating workplaces where asking for help is met with support, not judgment. 

Most importantly, it means continuing to talk. Out loud. By name. Say suicide. Say depression. Say anxiety. Say burnout. Say, “I’m struggling.” The more we use these words in ordinary conversation, the less power they have to paralyze us when someone is actually in need. We talk about every other safety hazard by name because naming a risk is the first step in addressing it.

Mental health is no different.

So this Mental Health Awareness Month, my challenge to our industry is simple: Do not let this be another May conversation that disappears in June. Keep talking. Keep asking. Keep listening. Keep making mental wellness part of the way we define safety, leadership, and responsibility. 

Because if even one person reads this and decides to pick up the phone, talk to a friend, ask for help or simply say, “I’m not okay,” then the conversation is worth having. 

You are not alone. You have never been alone. 

And the strongest thing you can do – stronger than any steel we set, any concrete we pour, or any deadline we hit – is ask for help. 

That is how we build what matters.

For anyone struggling, remember, help is always available. You can reach out to the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling 988 at any time. For more information, go to https://988lifeline.org/talk-to-someone-now/.