Help Your Employees Help Themselves

by Don Phin

EMPLOYMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS

Today’s employers face more workforce challenges than ever — many of them because of problems that employees face in their personal lives. Employee Assistance Programs can help. EAPs provide face-to-face clinical counseling for such issues as relationship concerns, family problems, stress, workplace problems, and alcohol/chemical dependency. These programs also provide telephone consultations and information for such 'life-management issues' as financial concerns, finding providers for child or elder care, tax issues, legal advice, organizing personal affairs, and pre-retirement planning. The information that employees share with an EAP is strictly confidential and not shared with the employer.

Considering the fact that substance abuse alone costs businesses more than $120 billion a year in lost productivity, an EAP program can be highly cost effective. EAPs have led to significant reductions in use of sickness benefits, work-related accidents, Workers Compensation claims, and employee conflict.

The three largest EAP providers are:

• Magellan (www.magellan.com), with 14 million total lives covered,
• ComPsych Corp (compsych.com), with 7 million total lives covered, and
• CIGNA (www.cignabehavioral.com), with 4 million total lives covered.

DEPENDENT CARE SERVICE PROVIDERS

Increasing demand for child and elder care has triggered the development of 'Dependent Care Services Providers.' These firms help employers take advantage of Internal Revenue Code Section 125, which provides a tax-advantaged method for employees to pay out-of-pocket health care and dependent day care expenses. The current IRS limit for this benefit is approximately $5,000.

A Business Insurance survey lists the top dependent care providers:

• Ceridian (www.ceridian.com), with 7.6 million lives covered
• Child & Elder Care Insights Inc. (www.carereports.com), with 6 million lives covered
• Work/Life Benefits (www.wlb.com), with 4.3 million lives covered, and
• LifeCare Inc. (www.lifecare.com), with 4 million lives covered

There’s plenty of help available for your employees — and you. EAPs and Dependent Care Services Providers will be happy to share the costs and benefits of their services.