The ABCs of EAPs (09/2009)

In this climate of financial worry and uncertainty, most individuals will be familiar with the concept of stress.  Although not an illness in itself, stress is associated with anxiety, depression, gastrointestinal illnesses and back pain.  And when you consider that sources of stress can be found both in the working environment and at home, it is hardly surprising that Britain lost an estimated 13.5 million working days in 2007-08 due to work-related stress, anxiety or depression[1].  Employers are therefore increasingly turning to Employee Assistance Programmes (EAPs) to alleviate the problem.

What is an EAP?

EAPs started life in America in the 1920s, where they were used to help employees with alcohol problems. In the 1980s they emerged in the UK, taking the form of telephone help-lines for staff, and were mostly found in the petrochemical and finance sectors[2].  Today, they can encompass a wide range of services for both employees and employers alike, including:

• Telephone and face-to-face counselling services
• Legal & financial helplines
• Online support and information
• Risk assessment tools
• Employment law support for employers
• Comprehensive management information
• Managerial coaching
  

Why have an EAP?

The Employee Assistance Programmes Association lists a number of outcomes of a successful EAP. Principally, they should help individuals, managers and organisations to[3]:

• Cope with work-related & personal challenges that impact on performance at work
• Improve productivity and efficiency
• Improve staff morale and motivation
• Reduce absenteeism and staff turnover
• Recruit and retain staff
• Position the company as a caring employer

Furthermore, employers have a legal responsibility to their employees under relevant Health and Safety Law, Employment Law and Common Law duty of care[4].  An EAP can help employers to demonstrate that they are fulfilling these duties of care.

How much does an EAP cost?

EAP costs can range from £5 to £25 per employee per year, depending on the size of the organisation and the extent of the services required[5].  Although the largest companies will usually be able to secure the best prices, this should not deter SMEs from investigating their EAP options.  Smaller firms won't have the resources of large HR and Occupational Health department and can therefore benefit most from these schemes.

Compared to the cost of some other employee benefits options, EAPs deliver a highly valued and current benefit at relatively modest cost. The table below illustrates the relative cost of different types of health and welfare benefits.

*Typical annual cost based on an organisation of 1000 employees and average salary £25,000[6].

Introducing an EAP

In 2005[7], the Institute of Employment Studies suggested the following process as ‘best practice' when considering implementing an EAP:

a) Assess the needs and aims of the organisation. Make sure there is a need for counselling and EAP related services, e.g. by conducting stress audits or employee surveys.

b) Internal or external service. Could the required services be provided in-house, for instance by Occupation Health departments? The IES research points out that internal EAPs may be perceived by staff to be biased and not completely confidential, and that external providers are likely to provide highly qualified staff and be better resourced to provide 24 hour assistance.

c) Choose the right provider. Take into account all of the following factors: 

• Cultural match between provider and customer organisation
• Experience of provider
• Qualifications of counselling staff
• Can the provider offer related services, e.g. stress audits or occupational health services?

d) Type of services and coverage required. How wide-ranging does the programme need to be? It could include a number of face-to-face and/or telephone counselling sessions and legal advice as well as offering access for family members/dependents. Care must be taken however, as the HMRC issued guidance in March 2009 limiting the provision of legal and financial advice under EAPs, as well as their use by dependents.

e) Costs and fees. Establish whether per head or ‘pay as you go' will be more appropriate; be clear about when this will be reviewed, what is included within the fees and what additional charges might be incurred.

Management information & ROI

It is difficult to measure Return on Investment (ROI) for an EAP, many of its outcomes are subjective and it will clearly be valued more highly by employees who have used its services than those who have had no exposure.  In fact, employers often admit to having no clear method of calculating ROI for their EAP, but they do observe a positive link between users of the service and increased motivation and performance as well as reduced absence[8]. The growing popularity of EAPs is surely testament to their success and value.

And finally....

While personal health and well-being are ultimately the responsibility of the individual, it is accepted that the employer can, and does, have a legitimate role to play. In fact, 54% of respondents to an Employee Benefits survey earlier in 2009 felt that employers should be responsible for promoting health and well-being to staff.

Derek Miles
Managing Director, Aspira Corporate Solutions LLP, September 2009

[1] Why is stress so important?, Employers Questions, Stress, Health work & wellbeing, Advice, ACAS website, accessed 20 August 2009

[2] Buyers guide to employee assistance programmes, Tom Washington, Employee Benefits, 12 January 2009

[3] Why should an organisation have an EAP?, EAPA website (http://www.eapa.org.uk/page--purchasers.html), accessed 24 August 2009

[4] The Law & Work Related Stress, The UK National Work-Stress Network, www.work-stress.net/law.htm, accessed 3 September 2009

[5] Buyers guide to employee assistance programmes, Tom Washington, Employee Benefits, 12 January 2009

[6] Employee Benefits: Return on Investment, David Woods, HR Magazine, 2 January 2009

[7] Employee Assistance Programmes, Newton L., Hayday S. and Barkworth R., IES Research Networks, 2005

[8] Employee Benefits: Return on Investment, David Woods, HR Magazine, 2 January 2009