Boston – Shawmut Design and Construction recently hosted its 14th annual Safety Week, focusing on physical and mental health, safety, and well-being. The week consisted of 731 events and training sessions held across 133 locations, including Shawmut’s jobsites and 11 offices around the country.
The week kicked off with the launch of Shawmut’s Mental Health & Wellness Leadership Group, which consists of more than 50 people, across functions, dedicated to identifying programs, initiatives, and paths to address the mental health crisis in the industry. Shawmut also introduced an online suicide awareness training that’s available to all employees.
Les Hiscoe; Shaun Carvalho; and Kevin Sullivan, executive vice president of the New England region, toured the MIT Metropolitan Warehouse adaptive reuse renovation project as part of Safety Week.
Shawmut has a commitment to sending everyone home both safely and improved. The events and trainings throughout the week included substance use disorder and certified mental health first aid trainings, talks on resiliency and suicide prevention, and fall protection and fire safety trainings.
“There are 60,000 people on our jobsites each year, with all different backgrounds, perspectives, and life stressors that form their experiences on-site each day. It’s our job to provide them with both physical and mental health resources, along with support and empathy, so they feel physically and psychologically safe,” said Shaun Carvalho, chief safety officer, Shawmut. “I am proud of everyone’s engagement in our Safety Weeks events and trainings this year, leaning into some uncomfortable topics that will make us stronger and better as we work to address the mental health crisis the construction industry continues to face.”
