"Hope is just as contagious, if not more so. If you can see that Joe got help and Joe's like me, it makes it a lot less daunting to ask for help." — Wendy Farmer

Construction is one of the most safety-driven industries in North America — yet one of the most significant risks facing our workforce often goes unaddressed: suicide. In this episode of Talk the TAUC, host Kirk Westwood sits down with Wendy Farmer and Dr. Sally Spencer-Thomas — clinical psychologist, suicide prevention expert, and founder of United Suicide Survivors International — to discuss suicide prevention and mental health in construction, not as an awareness campaign, but as an implementation strategy. The conversation explores evidence-based prevention strategies, peer-driven approaches that work in trade environments, and how to thoughtfully integrate the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline into company safety systems without stigma or fear. Mental health is not separate from safety culture. It is part of it.

Wendy Farmer is a nationally recognized advocate and strategist in suicide prevention and workforce mental health. She works with industry leaders to translate research into practical, scalable systems that protect workers in high-risk professions. Wendy's focus is on implementation — moving organizations beyond awareness messaging into measurable structural change by integrating crisis response, leadership training, peer engagement, and behavioral health into existing safety operations.

Dr. Sally Spencer-Thomas is a clinical psychologist, internationally recognized suicide prevention expert, and founder of United Suicide Survivors International. With decades of experience advancing evidence-based prevention strategies across workplaces and high-risk industries, she specializes in translating behavioral science into actionable leadership practice — focusing on stigma reduction, upstream prevention models, and building cultures where asking for help is the norm.

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Talk the TAUC podcast is brought to you by The Association of Union Constructors (TAUC). Your host, Kirk Westwood, is Director of Marketing for TAUC. In each episode, we’ll explore the latest labor trends, industry insights, and important issues in the world of construction. Our guests are industry leaders, subject matter experts, and innovative visionaries discussing how we are building the ‘world of tomorrow.’ TAUC is made up of more than 1,800 contractor companies that utilize union labor for their projects, as well as local contractor associations and vendors in the industrial maintenance and construction fields. TAUC’s mission is to act as an advocate for union contractors and enhance cooperation between all parties to achieve the successful completion of construction projects.

Discussion points:

• (00:00) Why the construction industry leads the nation in suicide risk
• (03:36) The "blurry Venn diagram" between construction workers and veterans explained
• (06:41) Why awareness campaigns, posters, and toolbox talks aren't actually moving the needle
• (10:09) How peer-to-peer and crew-based approaches create contagious hope on job sites
• (16:26) Why mental health must be an executive-level conversation, not just an HR checkbox
• (20:27) Understanding the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline and how to use it before a crisis hits
• (26:46) Psychosocial hazards — the work-related root causes driving distress that leaders can actually control
• (33:50) The one mindset shift every construction leader needs: treat mental health like a heart attack

Why are construction companies considered "low-hanging fruit" for cybercriminals?

Kirk Westwood sits down with Mike Hamilton, founder of PISCES International, a nonprofit providing no-cost cyber monitoring for small governments and public utilities. With decades of experience as former Chief Information Security Officer for the City of Seattle and managing consultant for Verisign Security, Mike brings real-world threat response expertise to construction leaders. The conversation covers why construction companies are increasingly targeted, the three most common attack vectors, and what "good enough" cybersecurity looks like for organizations without massive IT budgets. Mike emphasizes one critical mindset shift: "The Internet is not a nice place. It's here to sell to you, steal from you and manipulate your opinion." Topics include ransomware mechanics, workforce development, and practical resilience strategies.

Mike Hamilton is the founder of PISCES International, a nonprofit providing no-cost cybersecurity monitoring and threat intelligence to small governments, public utilities, and critical infrastructure organizations. A veteran cybersecurity leader, Mike previously served as Chief Information Security Officer for the City of Seattle and as managing consultant for Verisign Security. Through PISCES, he combines live threat response with workforce development, using real-world data to train the next generation of cyber analysts. His work focuses on making cybersecurity accessible, actionable, and resilient for organizations that lack dedicated IT security teams.

Subscribe now so you don’t miss an episode!

Talk the TAUC podcast is brought to you by The Association of Union Constructors (TAUC). Your host, Kirk Westwood, is Director of Marketing for TAUC. In each episode, we’ll explore the latest labor trends, industry insights, and important issues in the world of construction. Our guests are industry leaders, subject matter experts, and innovative visionaries discussing how we are building the ‘world of tomorrow.’ TAUC is made up of more than 1,800 contractor companies that utilize union labor for their projects, as well as local contractor associations and vendors in the industrial maintenance and construction fields. TAUC’s mission is to act as an advocate for union contractors and enhance cooperation between all parties to achieve the successful completion of construction projects.

Discussion points:

• (00:00) Mike Hamilton on cybersecurity - What cyber risk actually means: the five business outcomes every leader should know
• (08:33) The attacks you don't hear about: persistent access versus quick monetization
• (10:37) When ransomware hits: what it looks like when nothing works
• (15:26) The three ways hackers get in: social engineering, credential abuse, and vulnerability exploitation
• (20:22) The single most important thing business leaders misunderstand about cyber risk
• (27:01) Workforce development crisis: why cyber analysts are the fifth fastest growing job
• (31:33) One mindset shift construction leaders can make tomorrow
• Share with someone who would be interested, like, and subscribe now so you don’t miss an episode!

Resources:

PISCES International: https://pisces-intl.org/

• NIST Cybersecurity Framework: https://www.nist.gov/cyberframework
• California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA):

What's the real impact of immigration enforcement on construction sites—and why are a third of contractors already affected?

In this episode of Talk the TAUC, host Kirk Westwood sits down with Ken Simonson, Chief Economist for the Associated General Contractors of America, to discuss why construction feels more constrained despite strong demand and investment. Ken, widely cited by national and trade media for his economic analysis, helps unpack the market forces creating this paradox—from the low-hire, low-fire environment and regional employment variations to policy uncertainty around tariffs, interest rates, and immigration enforcement. The conversation covers data center and power construction booms, labor cost trends across four different measures, and why the Architecture Billings Index can be misleading. "There are huge parts of construction for which the ABI is a misleading indicator, not a leading indicator," Ken explains, offering practical context for planning in uncertain times.

Ken Simonson is the Chief Economist for the Associated General Contractors of America, where he analyzes economic trends affecting the construction industry, including labor markets, costs, regional activity, and investment patterns. Widely cited by national and trade media, Ken is known for translating complex economic data into clear, practical insight for construction leaders. He regularly surveys AGC's 28,000+ member companies across 87 chapters on market conditions, workforce challenges, and policy impacts, providing contractors with data-driven context to navigate an increasingly complex business environment. His economic analysis helps industry leaders make more informed decisions in uncertain markets.

Subscribe now so you don’t miss an episode!

Talk the TAUC podcast is brought to you by The Association of Union Constructors (TAUC). Your host, Kirk Westwood, is Director of Marketing for TAUC. In each episode, we’ll explore the latest labor trends, industry insights, and important issues in the world of construction. Our guests are industry leaders, subject matter experts, and innovative visionaries discussing how we are building the ‘world of tomorrow.’ TAUC is made up of more than 1,800 contractor companies that utilize union labor for their projects, as well as local contractor associations and vendors in the industrial maintenance and construction fields. TAUC’s mission is to act as an advocate for union contractors and enhance cooperation between all parties to achieve the successful completion of construction projects.

Discussion points:

• (00:00) Ken Simonson - the current construction market environment
• (03:54) AGC survey reveals contractor sentiment across 17 construction segments
• (06:30) Breaking down wage increases and labor cost trends
• (09:03) Is there really a labor shortage in construction
• (14:04) Regional variations and which states are leading or lagging
• (18:10) How inflation interest rates and tariffs affect project starts
• (22:29) Immigration enforcement as a major disruptor for construction sites
• (25:14) Why the Architecture Billings Index is a misleading indicator
• (29:24) What leading indicators contractors should watch going forward
• Share with someone who would be interested, like, and subscribe now so you don’t miss an episode!

Resources:

Associated General Contractors of America (AGC): www.agc.org (28,000+ member companies across 87 chapters nationwide)

American Institute of Archite...