Helping construction leaders improve the human experience in the industry. <br/><br/><a href="https://humansideofconstruction.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast">humansideofconstruction.substack.com</a>
Human Side of Construction
Claim This Podcastby Angelo Suntres
5.0(1 reviews)
13 episodes
Updated Daily
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Podcast Overview
Helping construction leaders improve the human experience in the industry. <br/><br/><a href="https://humansideofconstruction.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast">humansideofconstruction.substack.com</a>
Language
🇺🇲
Publishing Since
3/19/2026
1 verified contact email on file for Human Side of Construction
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Recent Episodes
June 8, 2026
Ep.12 - Safety Beyond PPE
<p>In this solo episode, Angelo Suntres tackles psychological safety — not as a soft HR concept, but as the operating condition that determines whether problems on a project get surfaced early or buried until they blow up. He breaks down the real cost of silence on a job site, why the old fear-based model has a shelf life, and what psychological safety actually looks like in practice. The throughline: it starts with the leader being willing to be wrong out loud.</p><p><strong>Key topics covered</strong></p><p>• Why most construction leaders can't remember the last time they admitted a real mistake — and what that signals to the crew</p><p>• How silence carries a dollar value: rework, delays, safety incidents, and change orders that started as unspoken concerns</p><p>• Why fear-based culture only looked efficient — and why it's aging out with the workforce</p><p>• Psychological safety vs. accountability: holding a high standard without shutting people down</p><p>• Concrete examples of psychological safety on site — toolbox talks, coordination meetings, apprentice questions</p><p>• Why recognition matters and how flipping the feedback ratio changes the dynamic</p><p>• How psychological safety directly improves physical safety</p><p>• The challenge: be wrong out loud in front of your team</p><p><strong>Connections</strong></p><p>• Episode 10 — mental wellness and protecting the individual (“the me”). This episode is its counterpart: protecting the team (“the we”).</p><p>Contact: <a target="_blank" href="mailto:angelo@hsoc.one">angelo@hsoc.one</a></p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://humansideofconstruction.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1">humansideofconstruction.substack.com</a>
June 1, 2026
Ep.11 - Recovery Out Loud w/ Trevor Botkin
<p>In Episode 11, Angelo sits down with Trevor Botkin - a Red Seal carpenter with 30 years in construction who nearly lost his life to addiction and suicidal ideation in 2019. Trevor shares his full story, from being told he was stupid in school to finding belonging on job sites, to the day he planned to end his life and the treatment center stay that changed everything. He’s now leading the development of Muster Point, Canada’s first worker-driven peer support network for the trades, built in partnership with the Canadian Men’s Health Foundation and ICBA.</p><p> </p><p><strong>Key Topics Covered</strong></p><p>• How basic job site conditions send a message about worker value</p><p>• Why construction concentrates vulnerable populations rather than creating mental health issues</p><p>• The role of shame, ego, and imposter syndrome in trades careers</p><p>• Trevor’s personal story: addiction, suicidal ideation, treatment, and recovery</p><p>• Chronic pain in trades and PAIN BC’s Trades and Pain initiative</p><p>• Muster Point: peer support platform, app functionality, and subscription model</p><p>• Why EAPs get 5% uptake and what to build instead</p><p>• Leadership responsibility: “You’re not just their boss, you’re their shepherd”</p><p>• Canada’s construction fatality rate compared to the UK</p><p> </p><p><strong>Guest Bio</strong></p><p>Trevor Botkin is a 30-year construction veteran, Strategic Lead, Trades at the Canadian Men's Health Foundation, and host of the CMHF podcasts Don't Change Much and MusterPoint Off the Clock. Since entering recovery in 2019 after walking back from a planned suicide, he's brought his lived experience and voice to jobsites and projects nationwide and now leads the build of MusterPoint — a worker-built, worker delivered peer-led mental health network for Canada's skilled trades sectors. If listeners want to get involved in MusterPoint or have lived experience and want to step up to be trained as a MusterPoint Connector and join our team, they can email me directly at <a target="_blank" href="mailto:trevor.botkin@menshealthfoundation.ca">trevor.botkin@menshealthfoundation.ca</a></p><p><strong>Links Mentioned</strong></p><p>• Muster Point: <a target="_blank" href="http://musterpointcanada.ca">musterpointcanada.ca</a></p><p>• Canadian Men’s Health Foundation: <a target="_blank" href="http://menshealthfoundation.ca/">http://menshealthfoundation.ca/</a></p><p>• Off The Clock Podcast: <a target="_blank" href="http://tradespodcast.com">tradespodcast.com</a></p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://humansideofconstruction.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1">humansideofconstruction.substack.com</a>
May 25, 2026
Ep.10 - Health & Safety 2.0
<p>In this solo episode, Angelo Suntres examines the gap between how the construction industry handles physical injuries and mental health challenges. Using the analogy of a broken arm - where safety systems respond instantly and without stigma - Angelo makes the case that mental wellness deserves the same systematic response. He introduces the concept of Health & Safety 2.0: integrating mental wellness into existing safety programs, strategic plans, and leadership training rather than treating it as a standalone initiative.</p><p> </p><p><strong>KEY TOPICS COVERED</strong></p><p>• The broken arm analogy: comparing physical and mental health responses on the job site</p><p>• Why off-site personal stressors become on-site safety problems</p><p>• How construction’s culture of toughness became a culture of silence</p><p>• The stigma barrier: why workers don’t speak up</p><p>• Three leadership actions: normalize the conversation, make EAPs visible and trusted, model vulnerability from the top</p><p>• Health & Safety 2.0: mental wellness as part of your safety program, not separate from it</p><p>• The business case: fewer incidents, lower turnover, less rework from disengaged workers</p><p>• The “ask again” challenge: stop accepting “I’m fine” on the job site</p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://humansideofconstruction.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1">humansideofconstruction.substack.com</a>
13 total episodes available
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This podcast updates daily.
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