One of the most powerful things about blogging is the ability
to express opinions on issues otherwise unspoken of when it comes to mental
illness in men. Coming from a family where both my brothers are currently
fly-in-fly-out workers, otherwise known as being rostered on ‘FIFO’, I have
heard about, and seen firsthand, the trials and strains that FIFO work can have
on the social and psychological well-being of men. Hence I have been driven to
write this most recent blog addressing the association between the FIFO work
lifestyle and mental illness in men. My aim is to raise awareness for any
readers out there who think FIFO is harmless.
So let’s explore this situation more closely. At present, men from all over WA are being flown to and from relatively remote locations as part of their everyday work. In these locations food and accommodation is provided for in the form of single room dongas and a meeting room ‘mess’, but only for them, not their families, thus separating these workers from their families during the rostered time on. Meanwhile, a schedule dictates the number of days these workers must spend on site and the number of days they are allowed off. Whilst this may seem bearable from an external objective perspective, the experience itself is actually far from it. In fact the suicide prevention group, OzHelp, which runs programs in the Pilbara, quoted a 70% rise of suicide rates among mining and construction workers who work FIFO when compared to the national average [1]. The following are quotes from men who have experienced a FIFO roster or been involved in the counselling of men in the FIFO workforce:
“It’s very difficult to maintain a relationship with your kids over the phone” – Greg Lilleyman
“It tears at me” –
Steve McCartney who admits that his experience working as a FIFO in the Pilbara
helped his family financially but now, aged 60, he regrets missing so much of
his kids’ childhood.
“When you spend lots
of time away, that absence begins to deteriorate the marriage. It causes
relationship breakdown, tensions, and affairs can develop, so everything that
they’ve been working for can fall apart. That causes an almost instantaneous
suicide in people’s minds because they think, ‘there’s no point me going on
because that’s what we’re working for’ “– Brenton Tainsh
“The problem with
anxiety and depression is when you stop work and are by yourself in your room.
You start thinking and it gets worse, which affects your fatigue” – Steve
McCartney
So let’s ask some important questions. 12hrs working, 8hrs
sleeping in a donga by themselves sometimes 5 weeks on 1 week off, other times
5 days on 2 days off…[How long can someone actually live this way, so isolated
and yet expected to be happy and hardworking? …Where is the time to relax? ...
Where is the quality time spent with loved ones? …Where is the time for a
social outing? … Where is the time for social sport? … How are our men actually
expected not to get lonely, not to lose connection with their partners or their
children, or even just their mates? …
No wonder the rates of depression, anxiety and suicide have
taken a leap given we have completely cut off the support and social networks
for our men [2]
On a deeper level, what is this lifestyle actually doing to
our men psychologically, socially and emotionally? It cannot be a healthy
setting for relationships when wives are being labelled ‘mining widows’ and
married couples are understood to ‘live apart together’ [2]. How more confused
can we get? Whilst many men will boast of the impressive financial returns of
this lifestyle, one must wonder if it is actually worth it when relationships
are struggling and men are isolated from family, friends and normal everyday routine
and social activities.
Recently there has been an explosion of posts on the
blogging site ‘Mining Families Matter’ which itself is a true reflection of the
explosion in the size of the FIFO labour force that has accompanied the most recent
resource boom in Australia [2]. This site was constructed for wives of FIFO
workers where they can blog and share experiences and support for one another
whilst receiving counselling or psychologically advice and services when
needed. Whilst this is of some help for the wives and families, one begins to
wonder where the support is for the men?
Interestingly enough, when you plough through these
websites, the woman all agree that the men experience numerous negative
emotional consequences of being in the rural location and these are intensified
by the masculine practices of drinking, swearing and violence [2]. The
consequences are visible in studies which have investigated the wellbeing of
FIFO workers and found that workers most commonly report suffering from high
stress, especially those with young children, disrupted sleep and fatigue due
to the long working shifts, feelings of vulnerability when on site and a sense
of powerlessness when they were away from home [3]. Directly correlating with
these reports is the increased prevalence of anxiety, divorce, depression and
drug and alcohol use in the FIFO workforce [3].
So how more deteriorated will we let our men become before
something is done? Already the effects are evident.
Rebecca
Turner explains the mining culture in a past article in The Australian,
identifying the mine sites as a ‘macho culture, where you are expected to work
hard, play hard and earn big money’ [1].
In fact anything other than this would be a sign of weakness which is
unacceptable. However the most distressing twist to the article was the discovery
of a 55 year old man who had died in his donga and only been discovered 2 weeks
following his death [1]. His disappearance was apparently unnoticed as he went unmissed
for two weeks. This is a direct example of the degree of isolation experienced
by miners on these mining camps and whilst this is only one horror story, if
you spoke to anyone who has worked a FIFO roster, it is now expected that they
too would know of a FIFO worker who is depressed, or whose relationship has
broken down or who finds it hard to cope with not being able to say goodnight
to his kids [1]. This isolation and distance from family is only one of the
many factors which social workers believe to be contributing to the rise in anxiety,
depression and suicide among workers.
At present,
due to numerous studies reporting similar findings of increased mental illness,
relationship breakdowns and suicide rates in the FIFO workforce, there is a
strong prompt for companies who employ FIFO workers to provide more mental health
support for their employees [3] In conjunction with this, companies are being
encouraged by government funded mental health agencies to reduce the stigma
that surrounds mental illness in the workforce, as on many occasions when help
was provided in the past, there was reluctance to seek help due to the ‘suck it
up’ culture [3]. Therefore rather than companies focusing primarily on the
physical safety of workers, the focus needs to also address the emotional and
mental health of workers. Whilst an overall improvement in attitude and
approach toward mental illness in male FIFO workers is in the near future, it
is still up to us to increase awareness within our communities regarding the
importance of mental health and to reduce the stigma that is so commonly
associated with mental illness in men who work a FIFO roster.
If you are a FIFO
worker, I encourage you to self-assess:
- your current state of mental health
- the quality of the relationships that surround you whether that be with your spouse, partner, family or friends, and are the people involved in these relationships (including yourself) happy with the current lifestyle?
- your attitude towards work
- and your
attitude towards the stigma which is strongly entwined in the FIFO worforce - If you were in need of mental health
assistance would you feel free to reach out for help or would you feel ashamed
and fearful of appearing soft, weak or unable to cope?
Be sure to
reassess these questions regularly to make sure you are on track. Be honest
with yourself and do not be reluctant to approach your local GP if you have any
concerns regarding your mental health.
For access to the
articles quoted in this blog, please visit the sites below:
- Turner R. Depression the dark side of the mining boom. The Australian [internet] 2011 Mar 12 [cited 2014 Apr 11];National Affairs:[about 4 screens]. Available from: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/policy/depression-the-dark-side-of-mining-boom/story-fn59nokw-1226019669569
- Pini B, Mayes R. Gender, emotions and fly-in fly-out work. Australian Journal of Social Issues [internet].2012 [cited 2014 Apr 11]; 47(1):71-86. Available from: http://web.b.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.library.uwa.edu.au/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=7723fc5a-bd6d-412f-8406-bc72186b3555%40sessionmgr198&vid=2&hid=123
- Validakis V. ‘Harden-up’ culture affecting
mental health of FIFO workers. Australian Mining [internet] 2013 Jun 13 [cited
2014 Apr 11];News:[about 3 screens]. Available from: http://www.miningaustralia.com.au/news/harden-up-culture-affecting-mental-health-of-fifo
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