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Addressing The Emotional Needs Of Employees Following Traumatic Workplace Incidents

BY CAL BEYER

Mental health and wellbeing remain top of mind for leaders throughout the construction industry. The pandemic underscored the importance of mental health and wellbeing of workers at all levels as well. One such area of special focus in the heavy/ highway and civil/bridge sector of the construction industry is catastrophic work zone incidents. This is a topic that can involve employees from various job responsibilities from affected state, county, and municipal transportation agencies, as well as roadway protection workers for contractors and subcontractors.

Protecting the physical safety of roadway protection workers is a priority of the members of the Kansas Contractors Association. Work zone incidents are frequently catastrophic with traumatic injuries. The mental wellbeing of roadway protection workers can be affected both by witnessing such incidents and from being exposed to the aftermath. Sometimes the victims of such crashes are co-workers or subcontractors known by those witnessing the incident.

Employers can help address the emotional needs and overall wellbeing of employees by incorporating Critical Incident Response capabilities and protocols into emergency crisis incident plans. This is an essential element of effective crisis management suitable for major workplace incidents and traumatic jobsite tragedies.

Following a work zone incident, Operations and Safety personnel busily execute “emergency response” checklists to clear damaged vehicles and other debris and ensure the roadway can be safely opened. However, it is important that these emergency response plans and crisis management protocols address the wellbeing of all employees involved as witnesses or potential victims of close calls. Addressing the human element of crisis management is vital.

This requires effective preplanning to know how your organization will respond should an “unthinkable incident” occur on a company workplace or jobsite. An important adage in crisis management is attributed to EAP industry leader Bob VandePol “a crisis is not the time to Google for a crisis counselor.”

Get to Know Your Employee Assistance Program

Quick Actions To Help Be Prepared For Critical Incident Responses

1. Develop a Crisis Management Response Plan with emergency telephone numbers and checklists of emergency action steps.

2. Determine if your organization has an Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

3. If yes, then: a. Understand the type of services offered: on-site, telephonic, virtual, text/chat. b. Ask about the expected response time in a crisis response. c. Communicate key contact information to all field leaders and supervisors. d. Request key leaders and supervisors create contacts in their phones to save the name and contact information for the EAP. e. Perform a “drill call" to “test” the service to ensure that your company knows how to access such services.

4. If no, ask your insurance risk management or employee benefits advisor to help recommend options and pricing for such services.

5. Develop a protocol for offering Critical Incident Response services as needed following a Critical Incident.

Many employers have an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) available to provide consulting to the organization and to provide or help facilitate appropriate counseling and support services to employees. It is important to contact your EAP service provider to inquire if they offer critical incident response services and what the typical expected response time will be to mobilize such services. If your company does not have an EAP, ask your insurance risk management and/or employee benefit advisor for assistance securing such services. There are some service providers that will provide critical incident services on an ad hoc emergency basis.

Additional Resources

Construction Financial Management Association (CFMA). May/June 2021. Crisis Management: The Critical Human Element. Building Profits.

Construction User’s Roundtable (CURT). Nov 2022. Critical Incident Response: Addressing Worker Wellbeing After Catastrophic Incidents. The VOICE

Cal Beyer, CWP, SCTPP is Vice President of Workforce Risk & Worker Wellbeing for Holmes Murphy. He’s been dedicated to construction risk and safety management since 1996. He was director of risk management and safety for a paving contractor in the Pacific Northwest from 2014-2020. He serves on the Executive Committee of the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention. Cal helped to launch the Construction Industry Alliance for Suicide Prevention. Contact Beyer at cbeyer@holmesmurphy.com or 651/307-7883.

Disclaimer: This article does not provide either legal or claims advice. The practices described highlight risk management practices to demonstrate employers’ caring culture for employees involved in potentially traumatic workplace experiences. Importantly, there are jurisdictional differences between states on the compensability of “stress” and “post-traumatic stress” in workers compensation. For some professions in some states, there are statutory presumptions of coverage. Seeking legal and claim management counsel is therefore advisable to understand the risks to rewards associated with instituting critical incident response services.