May 28, 2026
“A Call To Save Lives” campaign has brought together the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) and major construction companies to launch a nationwide 988 sticker campaign. It’s calling on industry leaders and safety professionals to distribute hard hat stickers promoting 988, the suicide and crisis lifeline. The 988 line provides judgment-free care through confidential conversations. The campaign, touting “Hard Hat Courage,” involves several major companies that operate in the Tampa Bay area, including Turner Construction, Skanska, and DPR Construction. Industry leaders and contractors interested in joining the movement or accessing mental health resources tailored for the construction trade can learn more at HardHatCourage.com.
“Mental health is just as important as physical safety,” said Trisha Calabrese, Senior Vice President of Programs at AFSP. “By placing 988 on a hard hat, companies can send a clear message to every worker that mental health is a critical part of their overall wellbeing. This campaign provides a new way of bringing suicide prevention resources to jobsites nationwide.”
The Centers for Disease Control cites mental health as a pressing issue in the construction industry, noting that the construction industry maintains one of the highest suicide rates among all professions in the United States. Experts cite several construction industry factors that exacerbate mental health, including travel strain, sleep disruption, performance pressure, financial stress, high injury rates, and a reluctance to show emotional vulnerability.
The National Association of Home Builders is among the groups working to eliminate the stigma around discussing mental health in the industry.
“Construction is a great industry for a long, rewarding career,” the NAHB stated in a recent release. “But physical demands and notoriously tight deadlines can cause mental strain, and a culture of individual toughness can prevent peers from talking to each other, making construction professionals particularly susceptible to mental health issues.”
NAHB is challenging the common misconception that mental health challenges are a silent home issue, noting that that depression, substance abuse, burnout, and suicide ideation can impact physical safety, work quality, productivity, and job satisfaction.
Officials launched the “A Call To Save Lives” campaign in May, mental health awareness month, but unions and local organizations have focused on the problem for quite some time. AFSP Tampa Bay promoted the Hard Hat Courage campaign in April in an Instagram post, inviting workers to access free services that can address the problem. There are tools not only for those dealing with mental health challenges, but for co-workers who have lost people to suicide.
In a 2025 Facebook post, UA Local 123 business manager Richard Cranker offered cautionary advice for his fellow workers, relating the challenges of mental health to the toughness often found in industry workers.
“By our very nature, we are problem solvers, but part of that toughness we have can be very dangerous,” Cranker said. “We hide things from our friends, our families, even our working brothers. We bottle it all up. We joke about the nights we can’t sleep. I know this because I’ve done it. I’ve sat alone after work thinking something’s got to give. It took me a couple of years to get past that.
“Mental health awareness to me means that we stop pretending. It means we look out for each other the same way we would on a scaffold or in a trench. If a brother or sister seems a little lost, a little quieter than usual, or a little quicker to snap back than usual, or just carrying themselves a little heavier – check on them. Don’t wait.”