There's room on a tradies' tool belt for a little deep breathing, say the team behind a series of workshops hoping to improve the mental and physical health of construction workers.
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When Pip Seldon's brother Dale, a 35-year-old carpenter, took his own life in 2009, she found it was part of a big challenge facing the industry.
Suicide among construction workers – almost exclusively men – aged 15 to 24 is more than twice as high as other young males, according to the Australian Institute for Suicide Research and Prevention.
Every two days, a construction worker kills themselves. They're six times more likely to die from suicide than a workplace accident.
Ms Seldon, who has lived in Canberra for seven years, has developed the Healthy Tradie Project and will host workshops around ACT construction sites to coincide with Mental Health Week starting Monday.
The workshops are a short half-hour introduction to mindfulness training and "mindful body movement". Rob Ginnivan, a local mindfulness coach who will lead the workshops, says the practice is about "paying attention in the present moment, on purpose, and without judgment".
"That equals them learning to be more present on the job," he said.
Like a spanner or wrench or nail gun, any time they need it "they can pull out three deep breaths and bring them an instant state of calm."
"Hopefully, down the track it will help reduce absenteeism, accidents on site, and encourage [workers] to reach out and ask for help if they're feeling any kind of stress or anxiety," he said.
Ms Seldon believed the benefits extend to building companies too.
A mindful worker focused on the task at hand is at less risk of injury. A healthy, well-nourished worker is "making better decisions on site."
Site manager Paul Flannery said tradesmen and women often worked physical jobs for up to 60 hours a week, but didn't tend to approach mental and physical health the same way a professional athlete might.
But the culture was "definitely changing for the better", he said.
"People are becoming more aware of how important it is to look after your body, and enable individuals to continue getting an income."
"The construction industry is always going to be stressful" but the Healthy Tradie Project could further promote that cultural change.
Ms Seldon said she has plans to bring the workshops to the mining, oil and gas industries, and fly-in-fly-out workers, all who "face similar challenges with respect to nutrition, exercise and the stress of tough physical work, long working hours and often poor job security."
