Summer 2026 - Flipbook - Page 30
HEALTH & SAFETY
THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY
DOES NOT LACK CARE!
By GIOVANNI CAUTILLO, OGCA President
T
HE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY does not lack
care—it lacks coordinated systems, tools, and integration. Let
me explain.
Over the course of May and
June 2026, the OGCA was very
proud to have participated in an industry-led initiative focused on mental health
and suicide in the construction sector.
This 昀椀ve-part webinar series was hosted
by the Infrastructure Health and Safety
Association (IHSA) and brought to light
more than simply the issues at hand, but
instead offered the construction industry a
system framework to implement and start
initiating change.
This entire initiative was started with
one conversation. No kidding.
I received a call from Mark Nolan,
Health and Safety Director for Multiplex
Construction Canada Ltd., approximately two years ago. During that call Mark
noted that he was becoming concerned
with the number of suicides; both being
reported and attributed to the construction
sector. That one conversation was enough
to spark a fundamental change in the
construction industry and a tidal wave of
interest in providing contractors information and resources that could potentially
change the trajectory of someone contemplating suicide on one of our construction
sites.
Fast forward two years and you 昀椀nd
a large group of industry stakeholders
that have come together to provide that
much-needed information out to you;
contractors, supervisors, forepersons, and
above all, the workers on site.
Special thanks to Kathy Martin, Coordinator, Research, Stakeholder and Public
Relations, Mental Health at IHSA for the
Herculean feat of organizing all of the
speakers and coordinating all aspects of
the sessions. She was the true driving force
to ensure that the construction industry
had access to the necessary resources to
make a positive change.
30 the generals • SUMMER 2026
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This 昀椀ve-part series applied a hierarchy of controls approach to psychological
health and safety, moving from upstream
prevention to downstream response and
ultimately full system integration.
The construction industry
does not lack care—it lacks
coordinated systems, tools,
and integration.
The sessions:
Session 1 – Leadership and Elimination
The first installment focused on
Leadership at the highest level in the
company and highlighted that behavior
was identified as the most critical control
for psychological safety. It’s actually quite
simple, culture is shaped through everyday
interactions, not formal policies. Stigma,
silence, and ego-driven norms continue to
prevent open dialogue and risk visibility.
What we learned from this session was
that psychological safety begins with consistent, visible leadership behaviors.
We also found that silence reinforces risk and then becomes embedded in
culture. Organizational success depends
on integrating psychological health and
safety into existing safety systems rather
than treating it as a standalone initiative.
OGCA.CA
