ABC’s Sizemore tabbed to help reduce suicides in construction

Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) announced Dec. 18 that Greg Sizemore, the association’s vice president of health, safety, environment and workforce development, has been appointed vice chair of the Construction Industry Alliance for Suicide Prevention (CIASP). In this role, ABC says Sizemore will help support the alliance’s mission to address suicide prevention as a construction health and safety priority and reach a zero-suicide industry.

“I am honored to be a part of this mission committed to raising awareness and equipping all levels of our workforce with the tools and education necessary to reduce the risk of suicide in the construction industry,” Sizemore says. “It is our job to not only make sure our workers go home in the same—or better—condition than when they arrived on the job site, but to also ensure they arrive safely the next morning. That cannot be done without acknowledging and addressing our industry’s suicide risk factors and integrating suicide prevention into our overall industry safety culture.”    

Men in the construction and extraction industry had the highest rate of suicide among all occupational groups in the United States in 2015, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The Construction Financial Management Association established the CIASP in 2016 as a response to the CDC study and now counts more than 90 stakeholders pledging to stand up for suicide prevention, including ABC.