Every year, the construction industry loses roughly 1,000 workers to on-the-job fatalities. It’s a number the industry fights hard to reduce, and one that commands attention, resources and rigorous safety protocols. But there are two other numbers that don’t always get the same amount of attention: approximately 5,000 construction workers die by suicide each year, and thousands more die from overdose. Mental health isn’t just a personal problem that gets left at the gate when workers clock in. It’s a worksite issue—and this spring, the LHSFNA mobilized everyone across LIUNA to treat it as one.
Since its launch, LEAN LIUNA (Laborers Escaping Adversity Now) has grown into a union-wide effort—backed by an Advisory Committee, a growing library of resources and more than 350 Ally Pledge signatories to date. This spring and summer, the work is gaining new momentum through a seven-part webinar series aimed at equipping all levels of LIUNA with the skills, knowledge and structure to provide life-saving support.
“Mental health has always been part of worker safety—it just hasn’t always been treated that way. LEAN LIUNA is our commitment to changing that, and to making sure that every Laborer knows LIUNA has their back, not just on the jobsite, but in every aspect of their life,” reflected LHSFNA Executive Director, Lisa M. Sabitoni.
Launched in April to lay the groundwork, the series is hitting its stride during Mental Health Awareness Month as the focus turns from awareness to action. Each session brings the right voices to the table—leadership weighing in on why this work matters, peer specialists speaking about their experiences on the ground and Advisory Committee members sharing the progress made in their Regions.
Taken together, the series covers the full spectrum of LEAN implementation—guiding participants through LEAN’s four levels, along with dedicated sessions for members and signatory contractors. To bridge the gap between theory and practice, the Train-the-Trainer session later this month is designed to carry these conversations beyond the series and onto jobsites and training centers.
Already available—view the recordings:
Upcoming:
The opening session this April drew more than 400 attendees, featuring a powerful moment from General President Brent Booker. Joining virtually from a jobsite, Booker spoke from the only quiet space available: the medic’s office. The setting was a vivid reminder of why LEAN LIUNA exists.
“On a jobsite, if a member gets hurt, we know the protocols and path to care,” said Booker. “LEAN LIUNA was created to support the things you can’t see—the struggles our Brothers and Sisters carry that they wouldn’t normally bring to a medic. It takes all of us to ensure every member knows where to turn for help.”
The sense of urgency is personal for General Secretary-Treasurer Michael F. Sabitoni. “I’ve lost family and friends close to me to overdose, alcohol and suicide. This isn’t abstract for me, and it isn’t abstract for our members. That’s why we have to keep doing what we’re doing, and then some.”
That same commitment is evident at the Regional level, where Frye has made LEAN LIUNA a cornerstone of the Midwest Region’s work this past year. Frye described his goal simply, “Mental health care should be as routine and accessible on a jobsite as getting a hard hat.” Every District Council in the Midwest has implemented at least Level 1 of the program, an accomplishment that was detailed by the Region’s LEAN LIUNA Advisory Committee member, Kathy Utter, in the second installment of the webinar series.
What LEAN LIUNA looks like in practice is best understood through people like Jonathan Ashwell. A Labor Recovery Specialist with the Massachusetts Laborers’ Benefit Funds and a former Laborer in recovery himself, Ashwell spoke at the opening webinar about what happens when a peer—someone who has walked the same jobsites and faced the same pressures—reaches out to a member who is struggling.
He described bringing a member to treatment who called his mother when he arrived. “He was proud to tell her, ‘The union brought me,’” Ashwell said.
For Ashwell, that call home said it all—his union was there when it mattered most. “Please don’t forget the people at the back of the pack,” he told attendees.
Every Brother and Sister who’s struggling deserves that same moment. As General Secretary-Treasurer Sabitoni put it, “The most courageous thing any of us can do is ask for help. LIUNA’s job is to make sure that when someone is ready to ask, the answer will be right there waiting for them.”
This Mental Health Awareness Month, here are three ways you can strengthen the culture of support across LIUNA:
[Natalie Kulick]
