Many people who are, in ordinary circumstances, excellent workers may encounter a period in their lives where they struggle with the responsibilities of their work and their outside lives.

Without assistance, such employees may end up being terminated or leaving the job voluntarily, costing the enterprise in recruiting, hiring, and training costs. Any organisation can benefit from an employee assistance program to help prevent these costs and to help employees lead happier and more productive lives.

An employee assistance program offers counseling and other services to employees in a variety of different situations. One common situation is dealing with issues specifically pertaining to the work environment, such as workplace stress or work relationship issues. All of us encounter difficulties in the workplace from time to time, but when stress becomes chronic, it can be destructive and even physically harmful. Chronic stress can cause symptoms such as depression, anxiety, insomnia, and even physical discomfort such as stomach aches, headaches, and backaches.

This can lead to very poor work performance as well as difficulty interacting with other employees productively. An employee assistance program can help by providing counseling to affected employees in order to plan ways to alleviate stress. Stress alleviation can include relaxation techniques or coping mechanisms as well as physiological changes such as healthy diet and exercise. By helping employees who are under extreme or chronic stress, staff absenteeism is decreased and workplace productivity is increased.

Employees may also need someplace to turn during or after major life events. While one common example is the death or injury of a loved one, even positive events such as giving birth can create negative effects. Other individuals may be struggling through personal or family relationship problems, such as divorce, which can be isolating and leave the person with no one to confide in. Many people can benefit from counseling in such cases and may not seek out such assistance on their own.

A company that has provided an EAP and proactively informs employees about their options will help individuals who are having such temporary problems, creating positive morale as well as decreased turnover and absenteeism.

Employee assistance programs are not limited to only counseling. Some programs will offer a variety of services to help with work/life balance issues of all kinds. For example, some employee assistance programs can help employees with personal finances or legal problems. While counselors typically do not come on-site for confidentiality issues, some employee assistance programs offer specific services to the employer itself for use in the workplace. For example, consultations for supervisors or management may be offered, as well as support for dealing with workplace relationship problems.

Even training and education programs may be available. During difficult periods, such as multiple redundancies or the death of an employee, critical incident services may be available as a resource to help in the workplace itself. Coverage can also be much more basic, so there is a program available for nearly any level of need.

Richard Reid of
Pinnacle Proactive, Specialists in the
Employee
Assistance Program,

Stress Management,

Staff Retention & Absenteeism. Take a Proactive Approach in Growing Your
Organisation

The cost for UK industry is staggering 11.5 billion was paid in wages to absent employees, or paid for temporary staff or overtime for absent employees, in 2002.

There are many ways of preventing absenteeism. Of the forty million days each year lost to absenteeism, over thirteen million are caused by common mental health issues, including stress, anxiety and depression. While not all mental health issues are preventable by employers, enterprises can mitigate the cost by providing appropriate resources to employees to deal with such issues.

An employee assistance program that offers face to face or telephone counselling to employees on a confidential basis can provide a needed outlet and source of information to suffering employees. While such plans do have an up front cost to employers, they typically save money in the long run from decreased absenteeism and turnover.

Employers can also be proactive in resolving workplace issues that cause stress and in turn encourage absenteeism and eventual turnover. Chronic absenteeism on a departmental or enterprise level can often indicate burnout or workplace issues, rather than a problem with individual employees.

Employees that are suffering from excessive workloads are an obvious target, but there are other factors that can create chronic stress, such as lack of communication in the workplace, multiple supervisors, conflicting job requirements, unclear job responsibilities, lack of autonomy, and micromanagement

Interpersonal problems such as office politics or even bullying can cause stress and anxiety.
At an enterprise wide level, fear of redundancies, lack of promotion potential, and lack of technological or financial support can also create problematic stress levels. To combat this, savvy employers will create open door policies to encourage employees to come forward regarding workplace problems. Counselling and mediation may also be helpful in dealing with such issues.

Employees also tend to take sickies due to physical and health issues. While some, such as colds and flu, cannot be wholly prevented, employers can reduce their impact on the workplace through sensible policy. Encouraging sick employees to stay home rather than creating a job environment where staff is pressured to attend despite illness can often facilitate less sick days, not more.

Further, even simple steps such as encouraging frequent hand washing and providing hand sanitizer to employees can reduce illness. Further, other health issues can be caused by workplaces themselves. Hiring a qualified ergonomist may help in preventing absenteeism due to complaints like back pain, as well as the added benefit of increasing morale and increasing employee productivity?

There are many steps available to prevent absenteeism, but the best first step is to carefully analyse the environment and to find out the root causes of absenteeism. Once that is established, creating an action plan to prevent the common causes can pay off for any enterprise.

Richard Reid of
Pinnacle Proactive, Specialists in the
Employee
Assistance Program,

Stress Management,

Staff Retention & Absenteeism. Take a Proactive Approach in Growing Your
Organisation

Fortunately, turnover is on a declining trend in the UK, but this also means that enterprises must continue to find ways to retain staff to remain competitive in the marketplace.

Some employee turnover is positive. A company that is too conservative in staff retention will become uncompetitive because some employees cost more to retain than to terminate. For example, keeping poor performers in order to avoid the cost of hiring and training a new employee will typically cause morale problems as well as discourage good performance in other workers. A chronic lack of workplace discipline can easily follow.

When a poor performer is removed and a productive employee is hired, the new employee can typically save or earn the company money that was lost to their unproductive predecessor. Further, a certain amount of ‘new blood is helpful in bringing in new ideas, keeping current with the industry, and encouraging a competitive and productive environment.

Unfortunately, a large amount of turnover is unproductive. When an employee leaves the company, there are many immediate and ongoing costs. First, there may be administrative costs directly involved with the resignation itself, such as organizational changes, administrative tasks such as ceasing salary and benefits, and so on.

To hire a new employee typically will add recruitment costs to advertise the position, as well as selection costs in reviewing and interviewing applicants. There may be costs related to covering the position while staff is being hired, such as through overtime or hiring a temporary worker.

Finally, there is the cost of training the new employee. Due to all of these factors, it can take months or even years for the new employee to become profitable for the company.

To prevent such costs, staff retention efforts are mandatory. One must focus not just on retaining staff, but specifically on retaining the best performers. While a workplace party may marginally improve morale overall, it may be more cost effective to target staff retention funds at the best employees through a compensation program that offers commissions, bonuses, or awards to productive employees.

Further, it is important to create an atmosphere of open communication with employees to help find the causes of turnover. In a large enterprise, an anonymous survey can be done to ask employees if they are considering resignation and, if so, what factors are involved with their thoughts of leaving the company.

Through this pool of data, trends can be established and the enterprise can target the specific issues that employees are struggling with. For example, employees may be leaving due to lack of flexibility in their work schedule, and creating options such as job sharing may drastically reduce turnover. Only through careful examination of the enterprise can staff retention efforts be effective.

Richard Reid of
Pinnacle Proactive, Specialists in the
Employee
Assistance Program,

Stress Management,

Staff Retention & Absenteeism. Take a Proactive Approach in Growing Your
Organisation

Typically, such programs include referral services and short-term counselling for the employee (and possibly other members of their household) and are typically offered to employees free of charge.

A company interested in providing an employee assistance program will typically purchase a pre paid plan from a third party provider. Selecting The UK Employee Assistance Professionals Association (EAPA) is the professional body for such providers and may be of assistance in helping to find a provider from their list of member companies. Alternately, employee assistance program brokers also exist that can help provide detailed cost information for a variety of plans from multiple companies.

When considering the purchase of an employee assistance program package, one aspect to decide upon is the level of coverage. Most providers will offer different levels of service. While a more budget-driven employee assistance program may offer only telephone support, a full package can offer face-to-face counselling. The size of the company will also significantly alter the available options as well. Specific programs are available for small and medium enterprises (SMBs) that are tailored to this type of work environment rather than a larger corporate setting.

Employee assistance programs not only offer an attractive benefit for employees, they also offer tangible return on the investment to the employer. Employee assistance programs can significantly reduce staff absenteeism, one study showed a reduction of 25-50%, as well as a far reduction in work related symptoms and sicknesses This report indicated that an investment in employee assistance programs creates six to ten times the savings to the company. Levels of substance abuse are reduced and job satisfaction will rise measurably. Employee assistance programs are also a marketable benefit to be presented to prospective hires. Employee assistance programs also retain employees who are struggling through difficult and often temporary periods in their lives, and thus tends to create fewer vacancies to fill through an expensive recruiting and hiring process.

Employers should be aware that their enterprise will need to be aware of the data that can be provided by an employee assistance program. As employee assistance services are only offered on a confidential basis, individual data about employee use is not possible or desirable. This would defeat the purpose of any such system as employees would be too fearful to use it! However, this does not mean that your employee assistance program cannot be monitored and held accountable for results. Aggregate data can and should be solicited from the program regarding usage and satisfaction. Employees should have the opportunity to provide feedback and a review of the process in order to insure that the investment is working. Consult with any prospective provider to see what they offer to employers in this area.

Richard Reid of
Pinnacle Proactive, Specialists in the
Employee
Assistance Program,

Stress Management,

Staff Retention & Absenteeism. Take a Proactive Approach in Growing Your
Organisation

Why does a dependable supervisor begin calling in sick, when you know they are not really ill, just before an important project is due for completion? Why is a valuable team leader always in a bad mood, snapping at her colleagues, coming in late, and leaving early - all of a sudden and for no reason at all? Why do you find yourself making decisions solely to keep the peace - to keep from upsetting fellow employees who always seem to be “having a bad day?”

If your employees were the right people when you hired them and if they were productive motivated individuals before, why not now - what happened?

When employees productivity, morale, and motivation fall - for no reason at all, it’s not for no reason at all. The first step toward ridding your organization of profit draining behavior is to recognize it for what it is.

Could it be workplace conflict? That’s right, conflict. Not door slamming, yelling, desk pounding confrontations. Those are more easily addressed since the issues are out in the open.

I’m talking about the hidden conflict from issues that are considered too insignificant to mention, so they build up until there is no turning back. Invisible conflict from quiet bullying and intimidation. Transparent conflict between people who act nice toward one another and then sabotage each other’s work.

As long as the problems resulting from these bad relationships are considered random and not something that can be measured and successfully managed - they will likely continue, cyclically, forever.

Once the behavior is identified as conflict and its financial cost to the organization calculated - the next step is to integrate strategies that have been successful for well over two decades in resolving conflict between individuals who are in long term interdependent relationships with one another.

“The vast majority” 99.999 percent or more of interpersonal conflicts that occur in the workplace — will be dealt with in the workplace, for better or worse. They’re not going to be referred to a mediation expert and they don’t need to be,” explains Daniel Dana, Ph.D., mediation consultant and principal of the Mediation Training Institute International.” These conflicts can also be carried to the dinner table when they involve family members in a family or privately-owned business, unfortunately affecting every aspect of peoples’ lives.”

When two or more people share responsibility for a decision, conflict between them causes decisions based on their power contest, not from their objective judgment of what is best for the business.

When an employee “forgets” to lock the office over a long weekend, “accidentally” leaves their company laptop in the coffee shop at an industry event, or “didn’t mean” to let office supplies run out or the forklift out of gear on the loading dock - is it because they are a bad employee or one with at least one bad relationship with a coworker?

Absenteeism is associated with job stress, particularly the stress of chronic conflict with coworkers. Honestly; have you ever taken a “sick day” when you weren’t really sick? Maybe you just thought you needed a “mental health break” from the daily grind of dealing with a micro managing boss or an annoying coworker.

Conflict is clearly a contributor, along with other factors, that cause illnesses and injuries, resulting is lost work time and cost the company money. Employees who are not at work cost your organization in more ways than their loss of productivity. There is also the cost of workers comp and health insurance premiums to name just two other costs of their absence.

Have you ever had to restructure the workflow of a department or of one of your managers - to reduce the interactions between certain people? When employees can’t work together harmoniously and processes or procedures are restructured to avoid or attempt to diffuse the “people issue” - you are on your way to sub-optimizing your whole organization.

The restructuring or other stop-gap solutions may (temporarily at least) reduce conflict but it diminishes the opportunities for collaboration and cross pollination of ideas. And decisions made under circumstances where conflict is present are never as good as when people work together toward agreed upon destinations.

How much time, yours and your co-workers is being wasted because of conflict? And time always equals money, earned or lost.

It’s an eye opening experience the first time you put the actual costs on paper.

Using a cost of conflict calculator, create an educated guess of the bottom line costs to your organization, of one conflict you are familiar with. Then multiply the estimate by the conservative number of such conflicts in a year and be prepared for a shock!

If you are determined to realize your organization’s potential, join our free email monthly announcement series at http://www.iBizResources.com/announcements.html and receive a COST OF CONFLICT calculator at no charge.

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Considering the time and money spend recruiting and training talent, employers and managers should consider the importance of increasing both profitability and efficiency, by tackling problems that can lead to extreme profit loss.

Even if a company or organisation manages to retain a majority of their talent, preventative measure will prove to be a valuable investment, and also safeguard a companys reputation. Employers seek references regarding the history of prospective applicants, but the street does go both ways.

Savvy employees desire to work for companies with solid reputations on all fronts, including treatment of other workers. At this point, one pivotal question arises. What proactive measures can be taken to address staff retention and absenteeism?

Hire a consultant to map out a specific plan.

Hiring a consultant based business can prove to be a fundamental starting point which will pay off in dividends, down the road. As times change, policies and approaches to dealing with your employees should too.

Evaluate the attitude of management.

When managers acknowledge their need to seek advice, high-tech networking can prove to be a quick, effective solution.

When managers act late, and a resignation has already been handed in, management should pause to reflect. Evaluating what methods may have been employed can decrease future turn over. Subscription services like BNET prove to be an affordable solution to receiving up to the minute news, views, and coverage of B2B life, on a daily basis.

Take steps to prove that you value your employees.

Building allegiance requires both the desire and ability to demonstrate that your employees are appreciated and needed. In todays economy, many workers fear being a victim of budget cuts, downsizing, or arbitrary decisions made by management that lead to termination.

Thus, CEOS, agencies, and even small business owners should acknowledge the importance of making a concerted effort to capture the heart of each worker. Increasing loyalty begins with connecting with people on a human level. A common trait of companies that receive high marks in being best-run often involves offering perks and incentives to deserving employees.

Stated benefits are said to include better morale and stress-related health improvement. Special events and thank-yous can re-energize staff that works long hours who complete arduous tasks. There are numerous creative manners in which appreciation for working hard can be expressed. Creative options are endless and can also be cost effective.

In closing, to accomplish maximum efficiency of any business, consider appropriate measures that you can utilize to manage your staff wisely. After all, the financial success of your company or organization depends on it.

Richard Reid of
Pinnacle Proactive, Specialists in the
Employee
Assistance Program,

Stress Management,

Staff Retention & Absenteeism. Take a Proactive Approach in Growing Your
Organisation

Employees who are dissatisfied with their office jobs often look for excuses to not show up. Some abandon the job entirely for green pastures. This can leave companies with too many open positions too often thereby diminishing work quantity and quality. These days, businesses are turning more frequently to telecommuting as a way to retain workers while improving their bottom lines.

Telecommuting allows employees to work from home (or other locations outside of the office) instead of traveling back and forth to the office every day. Telecommuting can be done full-time or just one or two days a week. The government has adopted some level of telecommuting programs. According to recent government studies, these numbers will increase because telecommuting works.

Many companies are finding that allowing their workers flexibility of location, even on a part-time basis, increases the work satisfaction and company dedication for its employees. Employees are less likely to take time-off because they are better able to manage their work time verses personal needs like doctor’s visits and parent-teacher meetings. Many workers say that their family lives improve with the time saved during commutes. This is especially important to families with two working parents.

Other benefits include reduced parking and gas costs, more work autonomy and fewer work distractions. Pregnant and disabled workers can better continue their work by working at home and often feel grateful for the chance to stay productive. These benefits lead to happier employees who stay on the job longer. Kwame Alexander, a publishing consultant, loves working from home. I can think so much more creatively when I am at home. Something about having my favorite music playing while I work in my slippers is really freeing. Plus, I feel the pressure to get the job done.

A recent study conducted found that telecommuting was a win-win concept for both employers and employees. 87% of the staff that were allowed to telecommute showed a significant increase in productivity of 97-100%. These workers stated that they were happier with their jobs, their work performance and their supervisors. Telecommuting staff members were more likely to stay in their positions than office-bound employees. They also took less days off.

Of course telecommuting does not work for everyone. Some employees fear losing their jobs because of the reduced face-to-face contact with bosses and supervisors. Some experience higher stress and decreased productivity due to an inability to balance work and home life. Others find that the social and professional isolation make them feel lonely. Ro some, the move to working from home worries them. One worker, says, I work better in a collaborate environment. I get motivated by working directly with others.

The attractiveness of telecommuting is reflecting on job search web-sites. Many sites include telecommuting as a search options and there are even sites that specialize solely on telecommuting jobs. In the near future, telecommuting may be a key job benefit that companies offer into order to attract top-notch employees, keep them showing up for work and keep them on the job.

Richard Reid of
Pinnacle Proactive, Specialists in the
Employee
Assistance Program,

Stress Management,

Staff Retention & Absenteeism. Take a Proactive Approach in Growing Your
Organisation

Convenience rules our lives today and it affects every aspect of our lives from work, to family, and even everyday events such as eating a meal.

Unfortunately, this I want it now kind of thinking is causing the amount of absenteeism in the workplace to skyrocket. Likewise, companies and businesses are having a hard time with staff-retention due to high turn-over rates, the rising cost of recruitment, and the outrageous demands of employees. These demands include higher salaries, more convenient work hours, and a need for more on the job resources, to name a few. So what steps can employers take to keep a happy medium in the work environment that will give workers the tools they need to excel in their jobs thus retaining them as employees? Luckily, there are many resources available today for companies that are having problems with staff-retention and absenteeism.

First of all, type the words staff-retention into a search engine and a number of websites will come up that advertise staff-retention services. There are numerous businesses out there today that help their clients, namely other businesses, to develop policies and plans that help promote staff-retention and prevent absenteeism. While the cost of hiring a consultant to assist in these areas may be pricey, business owners have the potential to save money in the end on the re-hiring and recruitment processes.

Another option that may be possible for some companies is to create more work from home positions. Modern day technology has come to a point where working from home is much more feasible. Furthermore, employees that get to spend more time at home tend to be less stressed and happier overall, thus fostering a better attitude about their job. Of course, working from home takes a motivated personality which is why businesses would have to decide carefully about which types of positions to convert into work from home jobs and then choose people for those positions accordingly. Overall though, employers would see lower turn-over rates and absenteeism would virtually cease to exist.

In this age of convenience, businesses need to step up and take action instead of just maintaining their out-dated policies on staff-retention and absenteeism. Employers need to compromise with workers in a way that will keep both parties happy enough to continue the relationship. Hiring staff-retention consultants and creating more home based jobs will definitely help; but the most important measure that can be taken done is to survey the staff on what their needs are and try to cater to those needs. Pleasing everybody wont be possible, but most people are usually open to compromise and when they feel like fair decisions are being made within their companies, they tend to be happier with their jobs.

All in all, people today are always looking for convenience, so employers need to accommodate this mind-set and make jobs more well-situated for their workers. The result will be a company that runs more smoothly and brings in more profits because employees will stick around for longer periods of time.

Richard Reid of
Pinnacle Proactive, Specialists in the
Employee
Assistance Program,

Stress Management,

Staff Retention & Absenteeism. Take a Proactive Approach in Growing Your
Organisation

Though employers cannot outright diagnose one of their employees with a substance abuse problem, they should monitor their employees performance and refer employees that are having unusual performance problems to the company EAP. An employer can be a supportive branch for their employee, but they must make it clear to the employee that their job is on the line if they do not correct their behaviour.

Substance abuse can be a tough thing for an employer to handle, but employers should try to be as professional as possible while also providing supportive care for their employees. As stated, the employer cannot outright diagnose a problem, but they can keep a watchful eye out for signs of substance abuse. Indications of a substance abuse problem may be unexpected or unexcused absences or tardiness, frequent use of sick leave, missed deadlines or incomplete assignments, or a noticeable change in personality. While on the job employers should watch out for employees that are sleeping, being excessively loud or inappropriate, or being disoriented because they may in fact be intoxicated.

These signs may not be due to substance abuse in all cases, but employers should be willing to confront their employees when they think their may be a problem with an employees performance. Confrontation may be a difficult task for an employer, but as long as the employer takes a supportive and helpful role the situation should move smoothly.

Referring the employee to the EAP counsellor is the first step to recovery, but it does not always have to be the employer doing the referring. Employees should be aware of these assistance programs so they can take on the responsibility themselves to contact their companys EAP if they think they have a problem.

The counsellor will assess the situation and decide what kind of treatment is necessary for the individual. Employees do not need to worry for these counsellors are strict professionals and all meetings are confidential. If extended treatment is needed the employee should understand that while away for treatment they are not in any danger of losing their job because their leave of absence is an approved leave of absence.

Employees with substance abuse problems should not be penalized because they are seeking help. It shows tremendous courage for a person to step up and take responsibility for their substance abuse problem. Employers should be supportive of the situation as long as the employee is making a conscience effort to help themselves. When the employee eventually returns from treatment it is usually a wise decision to have a conference with the employee, EAP counsellor, and a member from the treatment program.

This conference can provide an overview of the employees progress in treatment and any additional scheduling or other work related situations. Substance abuse is a serious problem that can be dealt with in a professional and supportive manner with the benefits of employee assistance programs. Employers and employees should familiarise themselves with their employee assistance programs in case a problem surfaces the situation can be handled effectively.

Richard Reid of
Pinnacle Proactive, Specialists in the
Employee
Assistance Program,

Stress Management,

Staff Retention & Absenteeism. Take a Proactive Approach in Growing Your
Organisation

For example, if an employee came into your office complaining about marital problems and you told them you were only interested in their work performance, then you’d be considered a bad manager for not handling the situation with a little more dignity.

Or what would happen if another employee with martial problems came into your office every day for at least fifteen minutes to talk. It wouldn’t be long before the other people in the department were complaining that the one who was confiding in you was receiving special treatment. Remember that by spending personal time with any employee, you are:

Taking other employee’s valuable time away from what the company is paying them to do since they are gossiping about the non work related relationship that you’ve got with the troubled employee.

Tying up your valuable time and taking away from what the company is paying you to do

Increasing the chances that you will be charged with favouritism

The point is that a professional distance must be maintained by supervisors and that neither managers or supervisors can be effective councilors. Trying to do this will only harm employee relations and performance evaluations. An Employee Assistant Program allows the companies who use them to deal with personal problems indirectly. Using this method company time is not used to council these troubled employees and issues of favoritism are therefore not raised.

As well, an Employee Assistance Program ensures that the employee will get the qualified help that they need that will generally make a difference.

There are three areas that are considered a managerial role when it comes to these programs. Managerial people should,

Provide information about the program
Encourage their use
Refer the employees that need these programs

However, there are several barriers that the manager may face when attempting to refer employees. First, they may be reluctant to get involved. If a manager notices that any employee is becoming more and more withdrawn at work, he or she may hesitate to approach that employee. The manager might feel that it is inappropriate to discuss a personal problem with any employee.

As well, there are other instances where an employee’s problem may not seem to be directly tied to their work performance. The manager may not want to interfere unless the issue is directly work related. However, if the problem is left alone, it’s often the case that it will eventually affect work performance.

There is also a reluctance to insult people. We’ve been taught to remain politely distant, especially in the workplace. Approaching a employee that might have a personal problem may appear to be the ultimate insult to many managers or even fellow employees.

Richard Reid of
Pinnacle Proactive, Specialists in the
Employee
Assistance Program,

Stress Management,

Staff Retention & Absenteeism. Take a Proactive Approach in Growing Your
Organisation