A young tradeswoman has revealed that highly paid construction workers often struggle with their mental health due to alcohol, drugs and gambling.
Bardie Somerville, who works as a carpenter, uploaded a video to tik tok last Friday to expose the sad reality that many of his colleagues face every day.
“When I was a trainee, I worked with this guy and I’m not kidding, he was always going through it,” he said.
“Every Wednesday he would lose half his tool kit because he would go downstairs and pawn them at the pawn shop to get through the week.”
He said many merchants don’t know how to break their bad habits or don’t have the support they need to help them.
“I look back and I can really see how I kept normalizing being in a really bad place and thinking that was normal,” Somerville said.
According to worrying figures from the charity MATES, a construction worker dies every two days from suicide.
Construction workers are also eight times more likely to die from suicide than from a workplace accident.
Ms Somvervile said more work needs to be done to help traders struggling with their mental health.
“Just because you’re in a difficult situation doesn’t mean you have to stay there,” he said.
Figures from construction services website Service Search revealed nine per cent of Australian businesses earn more than $200,000 a year.
Tradies can earn an annual salary of $64,315 for working in entry-level positions according to staffing agency Talent.com.
The challenges construction workers face with their mental health have also been exacerbated by the current industry-wide skills shortage.
A survey by Australian work boot manufacturer Steel Blue revealed that 54 per cent of respondents said the skills shortage has had a negative impact on their mental health.
Despite the grim findings, Beyond Blue chief executive Georgie Harman said traders are seeking help by talking to their friends, family or GPs.
Bardie Somerville, who works as a carpenter, uploaded a video to Tiktok last Friday to expose the sad reality that many of her colleagues face every day.
“More people are seeking mental health support since the survey began in 2022 and more than 60 per cent of respondents said they knew how to protect their mental health in times of stress,” Ms Harman said.
‘We must change the narrative about depression and other mental health conditions. Taking action, getting support, talking to friends or family takes strength and courage and is a very important step to getting better.’
Australia needs 90,000 construction workers to help build 60,000 new homes across the country each quarter.
The move is part of the government’s ambitious housing target to build 1.2 million new homes across Australia over the next five years.
