It has been estimated that between 12 and 18 percent of employees experience personal problems that lower their productivity; interfere with their attendance and availability; and adversely affect their attitude, conduct, and working relationships.
- Smart employers know that employees don't always leave their personal problems at the front door when they come to work. What affects an employee's personal life at home may affect the employee at work. Giving employees access to a free, professional, and confidential resource can help them resolve personal problems easier and more quickly. Research has shown that EAPs are an effective way of helping employees, and can reduce the risk and loss that can accompany unresolved personal problems----absenteeism, accidents, lower productivity, injuries and higher workers compensation costs, turnover, interpersonal conflict on the job, and low morale to name a few.
EAPs are pro-people and pro-organization. Everybody wins with an EAP.
- In addition to helping employees resolve personal problems, the EAP helps improve productivity in the organization in other ways. This includes working with groups of employees and work teams; providing education and training on health, wellness, and human relations topics; managing critical incident stress; making contributions to the development of organizational policies that affect employees; consulting with management to help employees improve productivity; and advising the organization on its behavioral health benefits/insurance plan.
It's True! Early programs to help employees in the workplace first emerged in the 1940s, and soon became popular nationwide. A national association of employee assistance professionals was eventually formed, EAP standards of practice were established, and a code of ethics was written, along with the certification of EA professionals. Today, most of America's workforce has access to an EAP.
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