Psych Health and Safety Podcast USA

Continuing our celebration of National Safety Month, in this episode, host Dr. I. David Daniels will speak with Yara Carrillo, a Chemical Engineer by training and a credentialed safety professional specializing in providing services to workplaces needing safety-related documents, information, and training in Spanish. The number of Hispanic workers in the labor force has grown from 10.7 million in 1990 to 29.0 million in 2020 and is projected to reach 35.9 million in 2030. Hispanics are projected to account for 78% of net new workers between 2020 and 2030. The Hispanic proportion of the workforce has increased from 8.5% in 1990 to 18.0% in 2020. In 2030, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects Hispanics to account for one out of every five workers in the labor force, at 21.2%. Hispanic workers are not only a significant percentage of the workforce but the majority in many of the most hazardous occupations. The sector with the highest concentration of Hispanic workers is farming, fishing, and forestry, at 43.0%. In second place is building and grounds cleaning and maintenance, at 37.9%, followed by construction and extraction, at 35.7. One of the important keys to perception is the language that one understands. It is difficult to feel psychologically safe when the language used to transmit safety information does not match the language you understand best. While it would be a stereotype to suggest that all Hispanic workers don’t speak or understand English, it would not be an exaggeration to suggest that many workplaces assume that everyone speaks and understands English. This bias can have catastrophic consequences for workers and organizations that care about safety. Yara will share her thoughts and experiences regarding bridging this divide and the value and importance of language in ensuring psychological health and safety.

To kick off our celebration of National Safety Month, in this episode, host Dr. I. David Daniels will speak with Nathan Benson, the Director of Occupational Safety, Risk Management, and Disability Services in Chatham County, Georgia. There are approximately 90,000 governments in the United States, divided into three categories: federal, state, and local. The public sector employs 20.2 million people in the US, approximately 14.5 percent of the workforce. However, when conversations about safety of any kind are had, workers in the public sector or left out. Injury rates tend to be significantly higher than similar work done by the private sector. Seven years ago, Chatham County, Georgia, decided to buck this trend by developing an occupational safety division and bringing in a 2015 National Safety Council Rising Star to lead the effort. Director Benson has been able to build the team and help the county through the global pandemic when less than 50% of the county’s workforce could work remotely. He will share the work done to reduce worker injuries and create a culture where workers feel supported and less anxious about the rare occupation that they are injured at work.

This episode‘s guest is Keith Prendergast, Safety Manager at A. Murphy, Inc, and a Local 103 IBEW Safety Committee member. With a modest upbringing and decades in the construction trades as an electrician, as well as recovery from substance use disorder, he has been an active member in the union’s efforts to help workers recover from substance use and address workplace mental health. Construction generates nearly $1.8 trillion for the U.S. economy. The industry has more than 753,000 employers, with over 7.8 million employees, to the U. S. economy each year. While the industry is a significant contributor to the economy, it comes at a cost from a psychological health and safety perspective. The construction industry has the second highest rate of suicide in the United States at 53.3 per 100,000 workers, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). In the U.S., nearly 45,000 Americans die by suicide each year — one person every 12 minutes. And for every death, there are more than 22 suicide attempts. In this episode, we’ll be talking about a serious topic, but we’ll be talking about it from a hopeful perspective from the perspective of workers, and in this case, union workers helping each other.

In this episode, Dr. I. David Daniels will speak with veteran Firefighter Roger Myers about a post on Facebook that changed his life. After a career in the United States Navy, Roger sought to continue serving by becoming a volunteer firefighter in multiple departments before becoming a career firefighter. After over two decades in a metropolitan fire rescue department, Firefighter Myers was depressed, suffering from PTSD, and watching his marriage fall apart. In an attempt to save the relationship, he wrote a post on Facebook regarding how the stress of his profession had spilled over into his life. The post went viral, and he received responses from around the globe regarding how his sharing had helped others with similar experiences. In this conversation, Firefighter Myers shares how this disclosure on Facebook helped lead him on a voyage of self-discovery, ultimately improving his overall mental health. This episode may trigger some watchers and listeners, so watch and listen cautiously. In celebration of Mental Health Awareness Month, consider listening to Episodes 19, 24, 37, and 40 for conversations with mental health professionals.

This week, host Dr. I. David Daniels will speak with Michael Zalle, founder and CEO of Yellowbird. Michael will share his experience as a Health and Safety entrepreneur, despite the challenges of being born without a right hand. He has been highly successful in the “business of safety” despite living in an often ableist world. Ableism is a set of beliefs or practices that devalue and discriminate against people with physical, intellectual, or psychiatric disabilities and often rests on the assumption that disabled people need to be ‘fixed’ in one form or another. Like many other forms of systemic discrimination, ableism is intertwined in our culture due to many limiting beliefs about what disability does or does not mean, how able-bodied people learn to treat people with disabilities, and how they are often not included at the table for critical decisions. Supported by loving parents, Michael learned early that he was capable of doing anything that anyone else could do, though often he had to do it differently. Not only has he taken a seat at several tables, he recently created a “new table” in creating an innovative company that allows safety professionals and organizations to match needs with capabilities.

The majority of the current workforce in the United States (roughly 35% of the total) were born between 1981 and 1996. They are part of a social cohort known as Millennials, also known as Generation Y or Gen Y. In 2025, as much as 75% of the workforce worldwide will be millennials. While they are not monolithic, engaging millennials in the workplace could be much better if they were appropriately led. Establishing clear goals with milestones is one of the ways that can be achieved. Millennials also appreciate being recognized for their work. Ultimately, what makes millennials want to stay with an organization is treating them like humans, not disposable corporate drones. In this episode, Dr. I. David Daniels will speak with Marques Bush, a self-described “X-Millennial” who serves as deputy fire chief in Lynchburg, Virginia. Though he is the product of a highly traditional occupation, he has several non-traditional views about the workplace. He has several non-traditional views about the workplace in general and workplace mental health. These views are not only by the generation he is part of but also by his specific experiences.

In this episode, Dr. I. David Daniels will speak with Wayne Pignolet, the Head of Operations at White Males, as Full Diversity Partners (WMFDP). Given the reality that a psychosocial hazard is a psychosocial factor perceived or experienced by the individual exposed, it should be no surprise that people of different ages, races, gender or sexual identity, socioeconomic status, and ability status will have different perceptions and experiences in workplaces. And while it’s common for women and people of color to be viewed as full partners in efforts to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion, it is not as common to have white men viewed the same. Wayne will discuss his lived experience as a self-described "privileged kid" and successful business owner, combined with a life-changing workplace injury, to focus on the critical intersection between safety, diversity, equity, and belonging. He believes that change in this space is about leadership from those that represent the majority of those in these positions in the American economy, white men. He and his colleagues at WMFDP suggest that leadership that needs to take place is not a “zero-sum” proposition but an opportunity for true personal and organizational benefit.

In this episode, Dr. I. David Daniels will speak with Dr. Joe Grasso, Senior Director of Workforce Transformation at Lyra Health. He is a clinical psychologist, mental health researcher, educator by training, and a partner to employers on workforce mental health strategy by trade. In the U.S., there are an estimated 350 individuals for every mental health provider. However, these figures may overestimate active mental health professionals, as they may include providers who are no longer practicing or accepting new patients. In addition to the lack of access to mental health services, many of the delivery systems themselves need fresh eyes and fresh approaches to the issue that has become more prevalent in the past few years than ever. Dr. Grasso began his academic career seeking to go into advertising but shifted to focus more on human behavior. In the aftermath of COVID-19, he has been focused on macro approaches to workplace mental health.

One of the standard ways to avoid physical injuries and reduce the overall effect of exposure to significant hazards is to be physically fit. Physical fitness is achieved in many ways depending on the individual and their current state of fitness. Similarly, psychological fitness can be essential in maintaining mental health in the workplace. In this episode, Dr. I. David Daniels will speak with Dr. Karen Doll, who works at the intersection of personal well-being and professional development. She is a Consulting Psychologist with 25 years of experience in talent assessment, development, individual and group coaching, customizing and executing strategies, and developing programs and platforms to meet organizational objectives. In her book Building Psychological Fitness: How High Performers Achieve with Ease, Dr. Doll addresses how to handle stress and avoid burnout by building psychological fitness. The book offers detailed information regarding science-backed and evidenced-based interventions and practices to enhance your well-being and resilience. During this episode, Dr. Doll, a licensed psychologist, coach, and author, will “take us to school” regarding how to build psychological fitness as a way to psychological health and safety.

In this episode, Dr. I. David Daniels speaks with Eric Gislason, the Executive Director of the National Association of Safety Professionals. Traditional safety professionals are, in many cases, still beginning to understand the concept of psychological health and safety and how psychosocial hazards relate to an effective safety management system. Eric will share his perspective as a tenured safety professional that “OSHA compliance is Not Enough.” Eric will also share how the NASP prioritizes training and certification for those who either have not, cannot, or cannot attend college. This focus on “working safety professionals” provides opportunities for those whose opportunities to progress might otherwise be limited.