Focus on the positive
Employee assistance programmes (EAPs) are an important driver of workplace wellness strategies – but employers and providers need to rethink how they message and communicate them, according to MetLife Employee Benefits. The company warns that focusing too much on the counselling aspects of EAPs creates a perception amongst employees that these are the main or only feature. This in turn can prevent employees from engaging at the outset as, unless they feel they need counselling support at that time, they may not look again at the other features in future.
Employee assistance programmes (EAPs) are an important driver of workplace wellness strategies – but employers and providers need to rethink how they message and communicate them, according to MetLife Employee Benefits. The company warns that focusing too much on the counselling aspects of EAPs creates a perception amongst employees that these are the main or only feature. This in turn can prevent employees from engaging at the outset as, unless they feel they need counselling support at that time, they may not look again at the other features in future.
A different approach, focusing on the positive aspects of physical, financial and mental wellness, positions the services differently in the mind of employees, which in turn can help improve usage and therefore drive better return on investment, according to MetLife’s research.
Jo Elphick, head of marketing at MetLife UK, said: “EAPs are becoming a standard offering in UK companies but more can be done to maximise their value. We’ve seen that employees are really starting to value their benefits so we should seize the opportunity to review and enhance communications around this important benefit.”
MetLife’s data shows that the impact of giving employees tools like EAPs can be significant when it comes to benefits for the employer: for every one-per-cent rise in employees feeling in control of their finances, for example, their engagement at work rises by 19 per cent. Feeling cared for by their employer is also a key driver of engagement amongst employees: every one-per-cent rise in feeling their employer cares for them delivers a nine-per-cent increase in engagement – and this is even higher, at 12 per cent, where employees feel they have a supportive manager.