Companies which employ a dispersed workforce are presented with additional challenges when operating their EAP, study finds, but the results are more than worth it
Companies which employ a dispersed workforce are presented with additional challenges when operating their EAP, study finds, but the results are more than worth it
In today’s age of flexible working, it is likely to become increasingly the case that companies are finding themselves with a more dispersed workforce.
It is often preferable in terms of work life balance for employees to be able to have some working time at home, and, if their job involves a lot of travelling, it may be more practical too.
And then there are the added benefits for companies of having smaller offices with lower bills to pay. Win win, perhaps, but when it comes to Employee Assistance Programmes (EAP), this does present an additional challenge for businesses in ensuring that all of the workforce have comparable access to these benefits.
An interesting recent study from Australia reinforced this view, when it found that remote education workers were using their EAP at a 13% lower rate than their counterparts based in the principal city of Adelaide.
The study, Cost-benefit analysis of an employee assistance program for a geographically dispersed workforce in South Australia”, from the Journal of Workplace Behavioural Health, published online on 24 October 2019, was a cost-benefit exercise of an EAP in a workforce of which 40.2 per cent were based outside Adelaide.
Despite the lower usage amongst remote workers, however, the ROI for the EAP was very encouraging, with financial benefits in terms of reduced sickness absence measured at 3.34 times the costs. Interestingly, the study also found that there was a 49% increase in counselling sessions delivered face to face compared to telephone sessions. Indicating a preference for in-person counselling.
Eugene Farrell, chair of UK EAPA, says: “Studies like this are really useful tools for businesses to measure the success of their EAP. Apart from the satisfaction of offering a solid benefit to employees, and having the knowledge that your duty of care as an employer is being fulfilled, it’s good to know that the ROI of this EAP is very positive, despite the fact nearly half the workforce are based remotely.
“Clearly, a dispersed workforce in a huge country such as Australia is very challenging for businesses, but it’s valuable to know even in a much smaller country like the UK that geographical distance amongst a company’s workforce does present a challenge that may need to be thought about and overcome. It’s also interesting that despite the distances involved in this Australian study, everyone who used the EAP still preferred to talk to someone in person rather than over the phone, indicating they are prepared to travel in order to do so.”