QPR's Shayna Klassen on Suicide Prevention with the Iron Workers

She walked into a conference room full of ironworkers for a one-hour presentation on suicide prevention. The room was packed beyond fire code. When she finished, no one left. Union brothers and sisters stood up and said: “We are dying. We are losing our colleagues. We don't know what to do.” People handed her their phones showing text messages from apprentices in active crisis. The presentation stretched into hours. Her phone did not stop ringing after she reached the airport. That day marked the birth of QPR for Ironworkers. On today's Trades Day episode of America's Work Force Union Podcast, QPR Institute National Training Director Shayna Klassen discusses the QPR for Ironworkers program, built in partnership with IMPACT and the International Association of Iron Workers, and the principle behind it: the mental health field had to change its approach, not ask ironworkers to change their culture. Ironworkers training ironworkers in their own words is the model. It is now reaching locals across the United States and Canada. If you or someone you know is struggling, call or text 988. Visit qprinstitute.com and impact-net.org for more.