According to the US Department of Labor, Employee Assistance Programs, if used to their full advantage, can be a tremendous cost savings to employers… as much as $5 to $16 in health care savings for every $1 spent on EAP services.

The effects of a comprehensive EAP can be seen in reductions in employee turnover rates and the accompanying costs of recruiting, retraining and loss of intellectual capital and experience. In addition, EAPs serve as an important piece of absence management programs, not only by providing early intervention into employee problems with such issues as depression, stress and substance abuse, but in helping decrease the incidence of workplace accidents and the accompanying workers compensation claims. EAPs have proven effective in shortening disability durations and have resulted in higher productivity upon return to work. EAPs also have an impact on the incidence of violence in the workplace by training employers to recognize warning signs; it is much easier to detect and defuse a threat of violence before it escalates into a violent act.

The compiled statistics below provide an overview of the frequency of some of the issues commonly handled by Employee Assistance Programs and the associated costs.

Depression

  • affects 10–20 percent of the workforce.
  • ranks as one of the top three workplace problems seen by EAP counselors
  • accounts for three percent of short-term disability days
  • in combination with stress, is the number one source of disability in the US
  • costs $5,415.00 in annual per capita health and disability costs

Job stress

  • accounts for 20 percent of all unscheduled absences, costing US companies $602 per worker per year
  • 80 percent of workers feel stressed on the job; 40 percent of workers reported their job as extremely stressful
  • 12 percent of employees reported calling in sick due to job stress
  • is a factor 60–80 percent of accidents on the job
  • accounts for 10 percent of all worker compensation claims
  • 35% reported their jobs were harming their physical or emotional health
  • 40% feel they need help learning how to manage stress

Stress and turnover

  • 40 percent of job turnover is due to stress
  • 47 percent of employees include high stress and burnout as their reason for leaving their jobs.
  • Replacing the average employee costs between $3,000 and $13,000

Stress and violence

  • 10 percent of employees have a coworker they fear could become violent
  • 14 percent said they felt like striking a co-worker
  • 25 percent felt like screaming because of job stress
  • 18 percent experienced a threat of violence in their workplace
  • nine percent reported an actual occurrence of violence in their workplace

Substance abuse

  • Substance abusers are six times more likely than non-abusers to file a workers’ comp claim.
  • 38–65 percent of all workers’ compensation claims are related to the abuse of alcohol or drugs in the workplace.
  • 20 percent of full-time workers report binge drinking in the past month.
  • 70 percent of adult drug users are employed

FirstCall, your Employee Assistance Program, partners with employers and human resources managers to work together on issues dealing with behavioral risk management, training and education, policy development, conflict in the workplace, and managerial support.

Contact us for more information on the benefits of an Employee Assistance Program for your organization. Call 484-337-411 or email the Director of Business Development.