There are some very confronting statistics around mental health in Australia, especially when taking a closer look at the mining and construction sector. In Australia, the mining and construction industry employs more than 1 million people, making it one of the largest employers in the country. This alone highlights the importance of raising awareness around the need to talk about mental health and normalising its presence in workplace discussions.
Many reports over the years from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and Beyond Blue have produced sobering statistics around suicide numbers being twice as high for mining and construction workers than in any other industry in Australia.
Looking to impactful businesses like The Blue Tree Project and initiatives such as Mates In Mining and ‘R U OK?’, the team at C.D Dodd brainstormed how they could spark important conversations about mental health issues. The end result is a collaboration between C.D Dodd and Liebherr, so that a brand new 3.35 metre tall excavator could be painted entirely blue from the factory.
The Liebherr excavator will be travelling across Western Australia through country towns and mine sites, with its first stop in Roy Hill next week, and will no doubt spark conversation amongst the work crew and all who see it.
For C.D Dodd, this action is just the beginning of the work they are doing to raise awareness around mental health in construction and hope to partner with other WA based organisations to continue this important work.