Employee Assistance Programmes: Why Your SME Needs One

Responsible businesses and HR professionals are always looking for things that they can integrate into their systems to make life easier for their staff. A great example of this (that has become a hot topic in recent years) is the idea of an ‘Employee Assistance Programme’, or EAP. 

Long-term business success relies on having a team that is motivated and able to do its job effectively. To do so, businesses need to put a plan in place to safeguard the health and safety of employees. This is the essence of an EAP; having a plan in place that means staff can access support when they need it.

In this article we will take a look at what is meant by the term EAP and why it is so important for SMEs to put one in place. Companies that do so will find out that EAP are not only beneficial for employees, but also for the business itself. 

What is an employee assistance programme?

Designed to make life easier for employees, EAPs assist staff with either work-related or personal life issues that can affect their health, well-being and job performance. These programmes are designed to make life easier for staff, assisting them with challenges whether in their professional or their personal lives.

EAP’s rise in popularity is because businesses increasingly understand that there is more that they can be doing to offer support to their team. Some of the ways that EAPs can help your staff might include: 

Stress management

There are many factors that can affect stress levels coming from both work and private life. Indeed, staff may not be used to having to deal with different types of stress at the same time, and it can have huge negative consequences for their morale, their productivity and the overall quality of their work. 

When a member of staff exhibits signs of stress management it can be an indicator that they are struggling to handle the stress that they are under. The signs might include:

• changes in their behaviour
• noticeable drop in productivity or performance
• changes in their appearance
• lack of concentration
• increased levels of lateness or absenteeism.

An EAP can provide a member of staff with access to a trained counsellor. This should be a professional who isn’t directly employed by the company, as it may well be the case the stress is related to other aspects of life outside of work. 

Grief counselling

Employees who have suffered a bereavement may face a wide range of challenges that make it difficult for them to function in their usual way at work. Losing a loved one can be one of the hardest things for anyone to face, and a profound period of grief is not unusual. The fact that everyone experiences loss in a different way means that you can’t have a one-size-fits-all solution for employees facing grief. 

EAP grief counselling can provide staff with the support that they need at this extremely challenging time in their life. 

Returning to work from injuries

Staff who suffer injuries can face challenges when they attempt to return to their working environment. Some elements are relatively simple to deal with - for example, staff with an injury such as a broken leg can be provided with the opportunity to work from home, until they feel that they are ready. 

Some types of injury, however, can take a great deal of support to return from. Take the example of a brain injury. Clearly, there are many different types of brain injury that can have a range of different effects on individuals. Returning from work after suffering one can be a real challenge, and specialised support may be needed.

“The consequences of some incidents may include concussion, severe headaches or relatively minor cognitive problems such as short-term memory loss,” says Paul Fretwell, a specialist in brain injury claims at George Ide LLP “certain injuries, however, such as frontal lobe injury and diffuse axonal injury, are far more extensive and can be devastating, resulting in a sufferer’s long-term disability that requires a lifetime of care and support.” 

EAPs can help put in place the processes and procedures to ensure that companies are well placed to support injured colleagues, especially as they make their return to the workplace. 

Supporting wellbeing and mental health

It is increasingly understood that health and wellbeing are extremely important to staff. Businesses must play a bigger role in offering employees the right package of services, tools and resources to support their mental health and wellbeing. 

Many EAPs offer wellbeing benefits such as gym memberships or other opportunities. But it is not only physical health that EAPs can help with. The importance of good mental health is also key, and EAPs might offer therapeutic counselling and other services. 

How does an EAP benefit SMEs?

Of course, it is clear to see the benefits of EAPs for employees, but it’s important to understand why they can be beneficial for SMEs themselves. It has been suggested that the issues alleviated by EAPs cumulatively cost businesses over $312 billion every year. Some of the ways that an EAP help the business include:

• Reduced absenteeism - when employees are unhappy in their personal or work life, it can lead them to be absent from work on a regular basis. The range of services offered by an EAP helps to minimise this issue and ensure staff are happy to stay working. 
• Increased productivity - EAPs are designed to make employees happier when they work. Studies have shown that happy employees are more productive. 
• Improved employee retention - employees appreciate when the company that they work for puts measures in place to make their lives easier. This makes them more likely to feel loyalty to your business and stick around.