David Smith explains how a proactive approach to
employee wellbeing can lead to a happier and more
productive workplace
The type of problems and issues
that employees need to deal with
on a daily basis are considerabDavid Smith explains how a proactive approach to
employee wellbeing can lead to a happier and more
productive workplace
The type of problems and issues
that employees need to deal with
on a daily basis are considerable.
An individual employee, for example,
might be struggling with personal and
family relationship issues, clashing with
a colleague or line manager, be coping
with depression or another
psychological condition, addressing
substance abuse or they may be trying to
manage personal finance problems.
These issues will naturally impact on an
employee in the workplace, whether
affecting their attitude, performance or
overall productivity, and as the line
between an individual's personal and
professional life becomes blurred, many
employers have stepped in by offering an
Employee Assistance Programme (EAP).
Here proactive employers have
acknowledged their role in helping employees
to address, discuss and resolve personal and
professional issues. After all, it's true that for
the vast majority of employers a happy
worker is a productive one. And if this is to
be believed, it's worthwhile and prudent to
invest in an employee's health and wellbeing
through an EAP.
Understanding the role of EAPs
Since their introduced to the UK in the
late 1970s, EAPs have become an effective
way for employers to improve and support
the healthy functioning of their
workforce. According to the latest
independent research commissioned by
UK EAPA (2008), 5200 organisations -
representing over 8.2 million employees -
already enjoy the services of an EAP and
indications are that this number has
growing significantly in recent years.
Essentially, EAPs are workplace
programmes that are designed to assist
productivity and attendance issues within the
workplace and support employees to identify
and resolve personal concerns that may affect
job performance. They provide confidential
support services, on demand, when it is
needed, free of charge to employees. As such,
EAPs are essentially a gateway to a wide
range of services and support functions. They
provide managed access to a range of experts
and mental health professionals and via a
structured assessment of needs can provide
support, guidance and information on issues
including health, marital, family, financial,
alcohol, drug, legal, emotional, stress, or other
personal issues.
The use of an EAP service by an
employee is voluntary and the vast
majority of employees who use EAP
services do so through self-referrals.
Alongside this group, most EAPs will also
accept referrals from other stakeholders,
such as trade union representatives, HR
and line managers. Regardless, though, of
how an individual accesses an EAP, it is
important to remember that what
ultimately distinguishes an EAP from any
other form of mental health counselling,
coaching or private counselling is the
emphasis an EAP retains on employee
work performance as a central guiding
theme.
EAP quality and standards
EAP providers vary in the standards they
operate. Some may use programmes such
as Investors in People while others may
operate ISO standards or another available
standard of accreditation. The UK EAPA
has, for example, published a set of
standards for its members. These outline
the minimum level of operation
purchasers can be assured of, as well as a
set of ethical standards.
Such standards schemes are established
to provide buyers with the assurance and
confidence that their supplier is
established to provide a reliable, safe and
high quality service for employees when
they need it most.
In addition to organisational
accreditation, individual professionals
within the EAP (such as counsellors or
therapists) will have and will adhere to
their own professional standards and
ethics, such as the British Association for
Counselling & Psychotherapy.
Developments in EAP provision
Current service provision among EAP
providers is the most flexible ever
provided by the EAP market. EAP
providers are increasingly able to tailor
services to meet market needs and offer
new products and solutions that can draw
on the economies of scale of operating
24-hour helpline and counselling
services. Before this, standard 'off the
shelf ' services were available to
organisations with little variation
compared with the wide range of options
and depth of service that is available
today.
Alongside the increasing flexibility of
EAP schemes, advances in technology are
also changing the way EAPs operate and
meet the needs of organisations and
employees. New services, such as Skype,
email and web conferencing are pushing
the boundaries of counselling and a
growing number of providers have
launched iPhone 'apps' to enable
employees to access EAP websites for
information, fact sheets and advice. A
growing number of interventions, such as
Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, are also
being undertaken via online technology.
These technological developments,
alongside employers' acceptance that they
need to continue investing in the health
and wellbeing of employees, signals that
EAPs will continue to be an effective
strategic solution for employers. They
look set to continue supporting
employees and offering a platform
through which to address personal and
professional issues before they impact
negatively on an organisation's
productivity and performance.
David Smith is chair of the UK Employee
Assistance Professionals Association.
