Weekly News Roundup Nov. 28 – Dec. 5, 2025

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‘We wouldn’t accept a crane collapse; we shouldn’t accept a suicide’: Industry pressed to act on mental health – Ontario Construction News
December 4, 2025
At the seventh annual Mental Health and Addictions in Construction webinar last week, health and safety experts said that construction workers die by suicide and opioid-related deaths at a higher rate than other professions in Ontario, and construction companies need to be proactive in preventing these deaths by implementing policies that promote psychological wellbeing. Mark Nolan, director of safety, health, sustainability and quality at Multiplex said, “We need to be honest with ourselves. While our physical safety systems are sophisticated, our systems for mental health have not evolved at that same pace. We need to treat the psychological hazards with the same rigour as the physical ones.” Nolan said that daily risk assessments for construction projects should consider mental health, and emphasize stress-reducing work design, supervisor training for early intervention, and a regular outcome measurement. Nolan says, “Just as we do for the critical tasks. If we wouldn’t accept a crane collapse, we shouldn’t accept a suicide.”

Reducing Gun Violence, Particularly Gun Suicides – Psychology Today
December 4, 2025
**Method warning** The US is the ‘only country in the world where guns are the primary means of suicide.’ This article explores how other countries have reduced suicide by placing restrictions on firearms, and how the US could reduce firearm suicides. The author, John Bateson says, “Several steps can be taken to reduce gun violence in this country, particularly gun suicides. One is universal background checks. Another is implementing a 10-day waiting period to buy a firearm. A third is enacting “red-flag” laws that enable police and immediate family members to remove guns from people who pose a threat to themselves or to others. A fourth is requiring gun owners to store their weapons safely…”

Breaking the silence on firefighter suicide – Firefighter Nation
December 4, 2025
In this article, the author describes navigating their father’s struggles with mental health and thoughts of suicide, as well as how fire departments can help prevent suicide. For example, “Fire departments can develop and execute action plans regarding our mental wellness that include suicidality recognition and intervention as a priority.” Individuals play a role, too, “Take comments about wanting to die or a person saying he or she is going to die by suicide seriously. Do not change the topic. Listen and avoid judgmental comments about suicide… Listening makes a difference and creates connection. Know that asking people if they are thinking of suicide and/or if they have a plan does not cause them to think that way.”

Gen Z Australians are attempting suicide and self-harming more than previous generations, study finds – The Guardian
November 30, 2025
A new study has found that young people 16 to 25 in Australia have higher rates of self-harm, suicidal thoughts, and suicide attempts than previous generations. Katrina Witt, study author, says that while there is no ‘single cause’ for this increase, “Generation Z has grown up in a period marked by rapid social change, and there’s constant digital connectivity. They’re experiencing economic insecurity, climate anxiety, and of course the disruptive effects of Covid-19 on their social and emotional development.” Tracey Adams, chief executive of Yourtown, which manages Australia’s Kids Helpline, says, “We need resources to help recognise and respond to distress, and to support parents and reduce conflict within the home. And we need safe online and offline spaces, by investing in the environments where young people connect, develop their identity and can access safe support.”