Leveraging Your Employee Assistance Program Lisa Bull, BA. M.Ed Manager, Training and Learning Solutions

Leveraging Your Employee Assistance Program

Lisa Bull, BA. M.Ed

Manager, Training and Learning Solutions

© 2008 Ceridian Corporation. All rights reserved.

OBJECTIVES

• Identify the Scope of Today’s Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs).

• How to Use Your EAP Program as a Resource

• Tools and Resources for Managers


A New Focus In EAP

• Most large EAP’s offer integrated EAP & Work Lifeservices.

• Provide support and counselling for urgent issues and crisis situations.

• Provide support to help manage everyday issues, before they become major concerns.


Ceridian’s EAP LifeWorks is Available…

• In-person: face-to-face counselling

• By phone

• Online

• Through personalized searches & referrals

• In print: kits, booklets and life articles

• Via audio CD recordings


KEY EAP FEATURES

• EAPs are typically available to you and anyone covered by your benefit program - spouse, children.

• EAP is usually part of your benefit package and is available to employees and their families.

• Most importantly – EAPs are CONFIDENTIAL!


Emotional Well-Being / EAP

• Balancing Work/Life

• Personal Relationships

• Marriage and Family Issues

• Divorce and Separation

• Depression and Anxiety • Violence and Crisis

• Grief and Loss

• Stress and Overload


Addiction and Recovery

• Alcohol and Drugs

• Gambling

• Internet Addiction

• Eating Disorders

• Compulsive Shopping

• Treatment Programs

• Support Groups


Parenting and Childcare

• Pregnancy and Infertility

• Adoption

• Feeding and Nutrition

• Sleep and Bedtime Routines

• Finding Child Care

• Summer and Holiday Planning

• Single Parenting / Blended Families

• Discipline, Setting Limits, Safety

• Teenagers


Older Relatives

• Caring for Older Relatives

• Living Safely

• Driving Issues

• Elder Fraud

• Caregiver Resources

• Senior Health

• Alzheimer’s and other forms of Dementia

• Housing Options

• Caregiver Stress – Support and Resources


Health and Wellness

• Health and Medical Information

• Wellness Services

• Diet and Nutrition

• Exercise

• Prenatal Health

• Living with an Illness or a Disability

• Self-care

• Preventative Health Care

• Alternative Medicine

• Smoking Cessation


Education

• Kindergarten to High School

• Homework and Grades

• School Safety

• Selecting a School

• Special Needs

• Talking with Teachers

• Colleges and Universities

• Alternatives to College

• Continuing Education


Your Job and Career

• Co-worker Relationships

• Managing People • Developing your Career

• Communication Skills

• Time Management

• Shift Work, Business Travel, Telecommuting

• Team Building

• Productivity

• Organizational Change


Midlife and Retirement

• Growing as a Couple

• Midlife Health

• Relationships in Midlife

• Life Planning / Priorities in Midlife

• Work and Careers in Midlife

• “Empty Nest” Syndrome


Financial

• Credit and Collections

• Getting Out of Debt

• Buying, Selling or Renting a Home

• Budgeting

• Financial Pressures

• Basic Tax Planning

• Planning for Retirement

* Telephonic Consultation with a Financial Consultant ( CFP) and referrals to financial resources within the community


Legal

• Consumer Protection

• Family and Elder Law

• Choosing an Attorney

• Estate Planning and Wills

• Bankruptcy

• Real Estate Issues

• Living Wills

* Free up to 30 minute consultation with a Lawyer * Up to 25% Discount on referrals to legal services within the community


Everyday Issues

• Time-Saving Services

• Consumer Resources

• Buying and Leasing Cars

• Home Repairs and Re-modeling

• House Cleaning and Lawn Care

• Community Information


EAP for Managers

EAP programs can support you in your role as a Manager.


WHAT DO EAPs OFFER MANAGERS?

• Management Consultations and Coaching

• Support and validation

• Practical problem solving information

• Online articles and monthly promotions

• Resources - articles, booklets, audio recordings

• Assistance in accessing appropriate resources

• A concrete, viable support for you to offer your employees when they approach you with personal problems, or when their performance begins to suffer


WHAT IS A MANAGEMENT CONSULT?

• Designed to assist and support managers, supervisors and HR departments through third party objective support

• Focus on support, coaching and action planning

• Provide educational materials, practical tips and follow-up

• Are a supplement - not a replacement - for your own HR solutions, policies and procedures

• An important part of a successful Performance Management intervention to hopefully help achieve a successful result


An employee experiencing personal problems may...

• Show an unusual disinterest in or disregard for work

• alter work behaviour - miss deadlines, unusual mistakes, difficulty

understanding assignments

• become forgetful or demonstrate poor concentration

• exhibit irregular or reduced productivity

• frequently absent or late

• take extended coffee or lunch breaks

• makes excessive demands on the manager’s time

• interacts poorly with co-workers

• is moody, or shows uncharacteristic irritability

• has uncharacteristic outbursts of anger or belligerence

• seems indifferent, lacks interest in daily activities


Issues for Management Consultations

• Employee performance, productivity and attendance issues

• Questions regarding sexual harassment or harassment in the workplace

• Employee conflict

• Substance abuse concerns

• Supporting employees suffering from depression or other forms of mental illness

• Discrimination

• Organizational change

• Violence, threats and anger issues in the workplace

• Burnout


Management Consultations DO NOT:

• Interpret your internal company policy

• Interpret government regulations

• Give legal advice

• Tell management what they can and cannot do

• Replace or infringe on your company’s internal organizational resources


TYPES OF REFERRALS

• Informal Referrals. There are no performance issues, HR not

likely involved yet, but you are concerned and want to offer support

by reminding the employee about the LifeWorks program.

• Monitored Referrals. Often in conjunction with other

performance management initiatives when there are performance

issues - HR are involved by this point. Our Management

Consultation Team would work with you and/or your HR department

to help you with your intervention and to present EAP as support.


DO’S AND DON’TS OF EAP REFERRALS

Emphasize the Following:

• Do contact LifeWorks before making a mandated referral

• Do try to be patient, understanding and sympathetic when you meet with the employee. Show support.

• Do emphasize that your goal is to help the employee improve the situation.

• Do focus on behaviour.

• Do remind the employee that the program is confidential.

Beware of the Following:

• Don’t get involved in the employee’s personal problems.

• Don’t diagnose or assess your employee’s problem.

• Don’t offer advice or recommendations about what the employee should or should not do.

• Don’t discuss the employee’s problems with anyone except your supervisor, HR or a LifeWorks counsellor.

• Don’t avoid the problem and assume it will go away.

Critical Incident Support Services

• Most EAP’s offer support (telephonic and on-site) in response to Critical Incidents

• Critical incidents are sudden, unexpected incidents which interfere with individual or group functioning eg. Accidents, sudden deaths, organizational restructuring, bomb threats

• Provide group defusing/debriefing and individual support and follow-up

• Support for employees and managers


Documents

Leveraging Your Employee Assistance Program Lisa Bull, BA. M.Ed Manager, Training and Learning Solutions