MATES in Construction New Zealand

We're back!

Some of the MATES team are in the office from Monday 9th and will be joined by the rest of the team on the 16th. The Field Officers have started booking in 2023 training right across New Zealand, so drop us a line if you want to see us on your site.

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If you're heading back to work this week, remember to check in with your mates. Sometimes the holidays don't always go as planned so make sure you take the time to talk and listen to how they are travelling. If you or any of your mates are struggling, give us a call on 0800 111 315 24/7 our helpline is there for you.

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We are here to support you over the holiday period. If you need to talk we are here to listen. If you or a mate is struggling help is just a phone call away 0800 111 315

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Remember to check in on your mate, it takes 10 seconds of courage to ask them "hey, are you OK?

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The holidays can be a difficult time for some people, it can be the toughest time of the year, especially after a big day like Christmas. For those going through tough times, the MATES team is available 24/7 on 0800 111 315. You can find some additional resources on, https://mates.net.nz/get-help for help.

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Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from the team here at#holiday
It's been a long year for the Construction Industry and we'd like to thank all of our partners that have supported us through three years of MATES in New Zealand.

Meri Kirihimete, MATES In Construction.

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More Accreditations for our Partners before we close off 2022! Congratulations to Kāinga Ora - Homes and Communities Build Partner Piritahi, Icon Munroe Lane, Signature Homes Ltd Garland Builders, and Ministry of Education of New Zealand's Aspec Construction Limited Mt Roskill Grammar and Cook Brothers Construction (CBC) Northcote Intermediate sites.

What an amazing finish for MATES and our industry to have 4 more sites accredited before we knock off for the end of the year. A big thank you to those involved in the Mahi and we hope you have a safe holiday!

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Meri Kirihimete from your mates at MATES!

This Friday will be the last day the MATES team will be in the office until 2023

The team is off for a well-deserved break and then we’ll be back rested, recharged and ready to go on the 9th of January.

Our 24/7 helpline will operate as normal right through the holiday season.

Be kind to yourself this Christmas and if you need some help give us a call - resources and tips to get you through the season are in our bio.

Kia ora ai koutou mo te wa Kirihimete kei te tumanako matou kia kite i a koutou katoa i te Tau Ho

Keep safe over Christmas and we look forward to seeing you all in the New Year.

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This Monday we celebrated MATES very first Principal Contractor's head office Accreditation. Congratulations to ICON for this amazing achievement, and cheers to many more to come in the new year!

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On Friday we saw ten of our MATES team and P**e from A-OK.NZ graduate from the Living Works Applied Su***de Intervention Skills (ASIST) train the trainer programme.

ASIST is the gold standard in su***de intervention training, and we were pleased to welcome Renee Schmidt from LivingWorks Canada and Lindy Macgregor from Living Works Australia to guide the team through their training. Both Lindy and Renee have extensive backgrounds as Living Works trainers, we really have been trained by the best.

This means that MATES now has the capacity to offer more ASIST training across Aotearoa. For our construction industry, this additional MATES resource will enable us to provide lifesaving skills to more of our workforce making our communities safer places to live work and play.

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This week, Field Officers Graeme and Hayden ran a General Awareness Training for the crew at Precision Homes as well as Matt Doocey.

Thank you to everyone who attended and to Nikki Rangiwhetu and the Precision Homes Wellington team for having us.

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Join us for a FREE live webinar tomorrow with one of New Zealand’s leading mental health advocates, Dr Angela Lim!

We all know how critical taking care of your mental health is not just to survive but to thrive in both the workplace and in our personal lives. That’s why we’ve teamed up with leading mental health advocate, Dr. Angela Lim (Founder and CEO of Clearhead) to host a special webinar for the construction and manufacturing industry.

Focusing on key areas of mental health, Dr. Angela will be joined by MATES Field Officers Nicole and Nate along with rob beard (Beard Brothers) to delve deep into managing stress and creating a work-life balance whilst providing you with tips and tricks on how to implement some of these strategies into your everyday life.

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Come Join Field Officers Richie and Sale tomorrow for the Civil Contractors New Zealand Bay of Plenty 'Teeing off for MATES' fundraising event at the Renner Park Golf Course in Tauranga!

You can find out more about the event here, https://civilcontractors.co.nz/10000-in-prizes--Teeing-off-for-Mates-fundraiser--Saturday-12th-November-2022/11095-c2b530de-9736-4713-a300-6cd576f2658d/?fbclid=IwAR03vIbijqjkzEkLgRK-eKQG6fPTtUIASFhCVG4Z0Ofe-1aDNXXECh12EQY

Last chance to grab yourself a bargain for Christmas with the MATES x Leeming Friends and Family Sale. If you scan the flyer instore you’ll get some awesome discounts and 2.5% of all sales will be donated to MATES to continue delivering su***de prevention support across New Zealand.

Grab the flyer here,https://mates.net.nz/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/N4837-Mates-in-Construction-Friends-Family-Flyer.pdf

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On Saturday, Trudi, together with family and friends hosted a 4x4 River Run event along the Waipara River in North Canterbury. The event was held to celebrate and pay tribute to the life of Charlie Jones.

"Having only meet Trudi a few months ago, where she shared her story, it became evident quickly the passion she has for the people around her. This was reflected tenfold by those who attended, supported, and contributed to the River Run, as a result $1700 was raised for MATES in Construction. A huge thank you to Trudi and all who were present, for allowing me to be a part of the River Run. The strength of connection formed around Charlie, highlights that we are in fact, stronger together." Nate, Christchurch Field Officer.

"I guess for me the day was a celebration of the amazing man that he was. The gift he left behind is a huge sense of connection." Trudi Jones.

📸: Trudi

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Episode two of Hey Bro is available on Spotify now! In this episode the guys have a yarn with Danny Beddingfield the President of Prostate Cancer New Zealand. Danny shares some of the hard stats about prostate cancer here in New Zealand and busts some of the myths about when and how you should get tested.

Listen to the latest episode on our Spotify or by clicking the link below.

https://open.spotify.com/episode/3p7QS9lJhoabIcMIVeQ6M8?si=17d97710cd0e46c4

A special thanks to David South for allowing us to use your song My Bro for the podcast intro and outro, listen to the song here, https://open.spotify.com/album/1SjaquUVXVECApunhRCwiG?si=ZzOxEz5CSIagQGGbe_8Upw

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Last Thursday, was a tremendous moment with MATES and partner, The Building Intelligence Group. Our very first office accreditation ceremony happened in the heart of the CBD with our mates at The Building Intelligence Group, having succesfully accredited their North Island Region with MATES.

"By qualifying for MATES accreditation TBIG Northern have gone through a programme of lifting the teams capability in mental wellness and su***de prevention. 'I want to applaud TBIG as our first consultant / Project Management company to gain accreditation. This is a great leadership move by the organisation who are not only looking after the safety and wellbeing of their team, but also all those they interact with across projects. Well done TBIG, your paving the way for the industry'”, MATES CEO Victoria.

Jamie Summers, Project Director at TBIG said, "I am proud of the efforts made by the TBIG Northern team to achieve the achieve the accredited status. I would also like to thank MATES for the essential work they do in our industry to support mental health and su***de awareness."

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Couple of weeks ago, Fergus Software threw a sausage sizzle fundraiser event for MATES with the locals around Mt Eden.

Thanks team!

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Hawkins have done it again! This will be the 10th site where MATES and Hawkins have worked together to get their whole site through to accreditation.

Yesterday we met the crew on the RNZAH Base in Ohakea where we celebrated their commitment to mental wellbeing and su***de prevention. Achieving MATES Accreditation demonstrates the huge dedication the Hawkins team has to its site community, ensuring everyone gets the opportunity to understand how to keep each other safe, and support one another during difficult times. A big shout out to Lauren Kaney who worked with the MATES team, to make sure this all came together.

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MATES is excited to have been chosen again for the Noel Leeming Friends & Family event. Pop into your local store from now until the 13th of November to grab yourself an awesome deal just in time for Christmas! 2.5% of all sales during this will be donated to MATES in Construction.

Grab the flyer here,https://mates.net.nz/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/N4837-Mates-in-Construction-Friends-Family-Flyer.pdf

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We've got some exciting merch dropping just in time for summer: check out the tees up on the MATES shop now by clicking the link in our bio.

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A huge congratulations to NZ Strong Group who have achieved their first MATES Site Accreditation!

📸: NZ Strong

Data released by the Coronial Office yesterday showed that su***de rates have decreased for the third consecutive year in a row. This trend is consistent with international data that shows most countries have seen no change or a decrease in su***de rates over the last three years.

MATES in Construction is cautiously encouraged by these numbers, which may indicate that international efforts to talk more openly about mental health and wellbeing, alongside targeted su***de prevention programmes like MATES, are working.

“While we are cautiously encouraged by the news that su***de rates continue to drop, we are conscious that the last three years haven’t exactly been representative of normal life. The results from our most recent industry wellbeing survey showed that suicidal ideation is increasing, not decreasing - from 4.5% last year to 5.5% this year. This tells us that there is still work to be done moving into this post-COVID environment here in New Zealand. To be confident that things are truly getting better for our industry, we will need to see a sustained, long-term decrease going into the next ten years and beyond. For that reason, we won’t be slowing down anytime soon.” – Amanda Hunter, Research Manager – MATES in Construction.

MATES in Construction will run the numbers to understand what the impact has been on our industry in the last year, but regardless of where they sit, MATES will continue to work with the construction industry to tackle this wicked problem.

MATES in Construction remains committed to a comprehensive and integrated approach to su***de prevention in our industry which includes developing programmes and services to support at risk groups such as rangatahi – our young apprentices and labourers. We are also working to bolster case management services so that we can better support those who reach out to us for professional support. The work doesn’t end here, we must work together to continue to support our industry.

If you or someone you know in the industry is struggling or needs help, call 0800 111 315.

Next month MATES will have a stand available during the Men’s Health Matters Event in Porirua, Wellington. Join the MATES crew on site on the 26th of November and line up for a free cut, provided by the local barber, Lisone Cummings and the barber community.

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