A recent survey has found construction workers in WA experience suicidal thoughts and behaviours at three times the national average, with fly-in fly-out and drive-in drive-out workers particularly at risk. Former FIFO worker Aroha McCormack lost a friend and colleague to suicide almost four years ago, prompting her to develop her own solution to help more workers open up.
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00:00Now this is my first time here, Wombat's been gone three years.
00:22Aroha McCormack met Jai Wombat-Keene driving trucks up in the Pilbara.
00:28In February 2021 she was coming off a night shift when she learned he'd taken his own
00:33life.
00:34This is where he spent his final moments.
00:36I haven't had the courage to come here but now I feel like it's time to come and see
00:45where...
00:46I'm sorry.
00:55More than 16% of Western Australia's workforce is in construction and mining as of the 2021
01:02Census.
01:03New research shows the state's construction workforce experiences suicidal thoughts and
01:07behaviours at three times the rate of the average adult Australian.
01:11Those in fly-in, fly-out and drive-in, drive-out roles are particularly at risk, with 2.4%
01:17of FIFO workers and 5% of Dido workers having attempted suicide in the past 12 months, compared
01:24to 0.3% of the general population.
01:28The report outlined a number of recommendations for change, including stronger government
01:32policy to ensure workers can't be discriminated against for disclosing mental health issues.
01:38Lonely workers, that was really one of the key factors that was predicting suicide, ideation,
01:44plans and behaviours.
01:45In the meantime, men's sheds in remote mining towns are taking on the task.
01:50Once you're working 12 hours a day and everything like that, you know, in Paribritan it's fairly
01:56isolated, very hot place.
01:59Yeah, you just need something else to do, I think.
02:03While Mrs McCormack is finally putting her graphic design degree to use.
02:07This is some of the journals that I've made for the FIFO communities.
02:12A lasting legacy for her friend Wombat.