How to get a grip on the new world of absence

Covid-19 related absence led to 32,397,966 lost working days in the months of April, May and June 2020. That’s according to UK figures compiled by absence management company FirstCare.

Higher rates of mental health and musculoskeletal issues among employees are predicted for the coming year. One in five adults experienced some form of depression during the pandemic in June 2020 (a doubling on the figures pre-March 2020, says the ONS).

What does ‘absence’ mean?

For HR teams, ‘absence’ has become a catch-all term to cover a fog of inter-related physical and psychological concerns. It’s also a term that covers employees taking advantage of the opportunity for days off. Only 16% of employers taking part in a recent survey believed their sickness absence costs data was accurate; 42% said they just didn’t know if their absence costs data was accurate or not.

Organisations find it hard to understand what’s happening because of the lack of a clear picture of specific reasons for absence. It’s harder to assess future needs and put in place the best forms of support for wellbeing at work. In other words, a limit on measures to prevent minor issues from escalating into serious long-term reasons for absence.

Alert to EAPs

EAPA chair Eugene Farrell said: “The lives of many employees have become incredibly muddled. One consequence has been how the clear lines between what constitutes absence and what doesn’t have become clouded. People are suffering from stress and burnout, juggling care responsibilities, worried about their wellbeing at work in many different ways.

“At the same time employers need their people to be engaged and do all they can to re-build levels of productivity. Taking charge of absence means HR and managers working together to be more alert than ever to the immediate needs of employees. They need to make sure they are aware of the range of EAP services, their accessibility. Good communication of EAP services as an everyday support system is essential. Once an employee is in touch with an EAP there’s a professional channel for understanding root causes and related issues and for the right support to be provided.”

How the pandemic means work just got personal

For all the social change in the UK over the past 30 years, employees have still been expected to leave their personal lives at the door. Work life and home life were expected to be kept separate.

As Andrew Hill, management editor at the FT, has pointed out in a new piece on the Future of Work, the pandemic has “triggered a radical re-think” of how we work, including new attitudes to the work/home divide: “before coronavirus struck, the future of work looked uncertain: algorithms and artificial intelligence; shifting demographics and globalisation; the move to outsourcing and part-time work; the endless demand for new skills.” The human element to working life was increasingly under pressure.

But the shift to working from virtual spaces, spare rooms and kitchen tables, has “made leaders appreciate not only staff members’ hidden skills but also their personal hinterland… the many responsibilities of individuals’ matrix workers, if you like, not only to line managers but to their families and communities”.

Hill concludes that an urgent priority for businesses and the ‘hybrid workplace’ is not only to find ways to integrate employees who are working from a physical HQ with those working from home, but close the divide between those who have a comfortable set-up for continuing to work and those having to manage multiple caring responsibilities, who don’t have a quiet place to work from – where home life brings disruptive challenges.

“Personal lives have always been seen as the enemy of efficiency and productivity. Staff have been expected to show their commitment by minimising or even forgetting any other kinds of responsibilities,” said EAPA chair Eugene Farrell.

“It’s also clear that some people are not only enjoying, but preferring, WFH and the new way of life it has given them. Now is the time for employers to have those conversations with employees about what they want and how it can work as a long term solution.

“Covid-19 and the sudden, enforced blurring of work with home lives – along with the universal impact of the pandemic threat – has exposed the fundamental interdependence between the two. People might not have been talking about issues at home, but that didn’t mean they weren’t always feeling them, that their work performance wasn’t being affected.

“Employers can no longer ignore the range and complexity of stresses that people are under – or the importance of providing professional support for the long-term. Because it’s all the strength, energy, creativity of motivated and engaged people that will see us through the ongoing crisis. ”

Are younger generations holding on to the mental health taboo?

Three in ten UK employees have hidden a mental health issue – explaining their absence as being caused by a physical illness – according to a survey among 2,000 office workers by Helix Resilience. 

Strikingly, it is the 18 to 24 year-old age group that is most likely to feel the pressure to conceal the real nature of their absence, 37% compared with 26% of those aged 33 to 44, and 13% of employees over 55. 

The scale of the issue is highlighted by another of the study’s findings: 83% said the lockdown period had a major negative impact on their mental wellbeing. 32% of men and 42% of women said they had felt anxious; 42% of men and 50% of women had experienced problems with sleeping.

“There has been great progress over the past 10 years in terms of attitudes to mental wellbeing, more awareness of what’s involved, more openness and discussion, more acceptance that forms of mental illness can affect anyone,” said EAPA Chair Eugene Farrell.

“It might be expected that younger staff, coming fresh into this new work culture, would be the most progressive and comfortable with talking about mental health. But that’s to underestimate the additional pressures that younger people can be under: less financial security, maybe a less stable network of people behind them, and a sense they have more to prove to an employer – how they’re strong and committed.

“It’s always going to be a difficult conversation, raising mental health with an employer – much easier to say it’s back pain – and it’s critical that HR make their EAP offering as accessible as possible so that employees can start being honest, with themselves as much as anyone else; that they have someone they can talk to anonymously as a constructive way forward in recognising what’s happening and minimising the impacts so they are feeling better more quickly. Digital offerings, access via smartphone apps, through chat functions and video counselling can all help.”

Is it the end of face-to-face EAP counselling?

With the introduction of the Covid-19 lockdown, counselling in the UK had to shift almost overnight to a remote approach. How did UK EAP counselling professionals cope with such a dramatic change – and does this mean permanent consequences for how workplace counselling is delivered?

EAPA UK surveyed EAP counsellors about their experiences during the pandemic period and received responses from over 200. Before the crisis, around 80% of their EAP counselling work was delivered face-to-face. From March 2020 this picture changed to a variety of methods in order to continue to meet the demand to maintain counselling services: Counsellors reported undertaking a variety of delivery methods with 92% delivering counselling by telephone; 86% using video; 6% e-mail; 5% via electronic chat; and some 3% using text based counselling.

The critical question is, were these approaches effective? From a counsellors perspective did they feel like a good way of working? 84% of respondents said that telephone counselling was a satisfactory way to work, while video counselling was satisfactory to 79%. Other methods, though, were found to be much less satisfactory (chat and email at 5% and text 4%). 57% of counsellors felt that these other approaches were more demanding than face-to-face work.

We wondered if counsellors had been trained for using remote methods. Our data showed 54% had been trained in telephone counselling, 52% in video counselling. Only 5% were trained in chat or text and 6% in email counselling. Many counsellors flagged their need for further training: video 44%; telephone 31%; email 16%; chat 15% and text 14%.

The evidence from the survey points to long-term changes to the EAP counselling landscape as a result of the pandemic experience – and discovering the practical value and impact of alternative delivery methods. More than half of counsellors (58%) said they will be formalising video counselling as a new offering, and 45% telephone counselling. Text, chat and e-mail were all below 10%. 

Individual experiences from counsellors suggest the alternatives were a positive surprise: “I’ve found phone and video counselling to be very effective, with some clients saying they prefer it. It means I can work from home & have more flexibility and to be able to offer this flexibility to clients,” said one counsellor.  “After initial apprehension about switching from F2F to online counselling, I have become comfortable with the medium and see its potential in reaching more clients,” added another.

Most responses indicated the need for maintaining a balance. “Lockdown has pushed me into doing more video work, this is something I’ll continue, but I am happy to just incorporate it where needed, and still continue with face to face.”; “I offered face to face and phone prior to lockdown. I’ve just completed training in phone, webcam, email and IM I would like to keep up all methods.”

But there were issues for some, particularly around the unfamiliarity and additional intensity that remote contact can involve: “Video counselling has been harder than I thought it would be. I have found staring at a screen exhausting! I am getting used to it and not as tired as I was, and I think I might keep offering it as a service 1-2 days a week post lockdown.”; “Remote video sessions can be challenging due to technical issues. It feels very two dimensional. I find phone sessions somewhat better, although nothing compares to the immediacy and intimacy of face to face work.”

The survey illustrated substantial concerns over the risks presented by any return to face-to-face sessions. 53% wanted advice on how to safely return to in-the room working. “Until there is a vaccine I doubt that I will return to face to face counselling,” was one response. And another: “My concerns with the easing of lockdown and returning to face to face work is that I don’t know if it will be safe to undertake meetings in a confined room for an hour even with two metre distancing.” The value of returning to in-room meetings under social distancing regulations was also questioned. “I much prefer face to face counselling but would not wish to return to this if it involved face coverings.”

Overall, the EAP counselling community appears to be willing and able to shift toward remote and digital ways of working. There’s a need for training. And there’s also the issue of finding ways to deal with the impact of video fatigue, the need for increased level of concentration and observation. A challenge for the sector might be reaching agreement over the new world of fees. A number of counsellors reported EAP providers paying reduced rates for telephone counselling calls: “I have noticed EAPs have taken the opportunity to drop their rates. This is unacceptable. I have been delivering telephone counselling at the same rate as face to face for a number of years for a number of EAPs. I am now declining all lower rate referrals.”

The crisis has demonstrated the adaptability and professionalism of the EAP industry. It has been critical for counselling to continue, for vulnerable people to keep getting support throughout lockdown and the ongoing challenges. Like in so many areas of post-pandemic life, the future will be about having more flexible and blended offerings, more choice to suit individual customer circumstances – but the industry and its professionals need to do some work together to make smooth progress into that new reality.

Eugene Farrell, chair, EAPA UK

Aftershocks of ‘financial and mental trauma’ are coming 

Immediate action is needed by employers to overcome the stigma around discussing financial problems according to a Financial Wellbeing Guide produced by Alliance Manchester Business School. 

Months of furlough pay, pay cuts and the arrival of a recession in the UK economy mean widespread threats of financial anxiety. The Guide points to how financial concerns were already a primary cause of stress before the pandemic period. Now the threat of poverty has become a reality for many more people, particularly among women, young people, Black, Asian and minority ethnic groups and people with a disability.

Report author Professor Cary Cooper said: “Financial security is now, more than ever before, a crucial part of employee wellbeing. The impact the pandemic is having on the mental health of the UK workforce is seismic and we’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg so far. Work-related stress will soar with the onset of the financial recession and this will severely affect productivity across the UK.”

The first response for HR should be to make sure staff are able to get access to an EAP, says Cooper. 

EAPA chair Eugene Farrell said: “Talking about money is a problem. As a society in general we have been used to a relative level of affluence, luxuries have come easily. Facing up to the potential prospect of losing our home, our ability to spend, is traumatic – a collapse in everything we’re used to, our routines, our identity. 

“While we’ve made great strides of progress when it comes to talking about mental health, there is a stigma around confessing to financial issues, to what might be seen as ‘failing’. 

“EAPs are and will be an invaluable source of support for staff living with financial insecurity, both in terms of providing practical support around money management and planning and emotionally and psychologically in making sure people can deal with all the associated impacts on work and relationships and staying strong through periods of change.”

Who’s in the frontline of the ‘mental health pandemic’?

Office for National Statistics figures from June 2020 point to one in five UK adults (19%) experiencing some form of depression. This headline stat is double that of the typical figure recorded in the nine months leading up to the start of the Covid-19 lockdown in March.

The survey of more than 3,500 people also suggested that one in eight had developed “moderate to severe depressive symptoms” during the pandemic period. The biggest reason for the decline in wellbeing was flagged by participants as being feelings of stress in general – and, in particular, envy at how other people appeared to be faring better through the crisis than themselves.

Some employees have reported how being furloughed and working from home has led to a better work/life balance, a chance for a break and time for other people – but the ONS data suggest that just 3.5% of people have seen an improvement in their mental health as a result of the pandemic period.

Data from different sources in the UK and internationally about the impact on mental health has confirmed a landscape of widespread negative impacts and the makings of long-term issues. The issue is how employers and HR teams can best respond and prepare for the long haul of ensuring good employee wellbeing.

“Advice from the CIPD, for example, calls for a ‘ramping up’ of employer support for mental health. More support for people working from home and feeling cut off from day-to-day operations. A more charing culture. More understanding of individual personal circumstances,” said Eugene Farrell, EAPA chair.

“In other words, line managers being expected to take on the responsibility of ensuring good relationships, that staff facing complex bundles of problems at home and work are listened to, understood, given the right support. Even in normal times this could be a challenge for managers – now it’s nightmarish, having to balance the needs of the organisation with any number of individual situations, remote working, absence, presenteeism. It’s too much to expect from someone still expected to deliver on hard performance targets, who has their own pandemic worries to deal with.

“That’s why the independent expertise of an EAP is so important. People need someone always available to listen, to give professional advice and guidance. And someone who they can speak to anonymously. We know more employees are facing mental wellbeing challenges, but at a time when jobs are under threat, when employers need resilient, committed and reliable staff, how many of them really want to spell out the severity of their issues to their manager?”

No let-up in the Covid-19 effect on employee wellbeing  

Almost 60% of UK employees believe their wellbeing was negatively affected over the past month.

That’s according to a survey of 6,273 staff by benefits firm Perkbox which pointed to the impact of planned changes to the furlough scheme and uncertainty over job security and increased levels of stress and anxiety.

46% of the employees involved have highlighted how feelings of isolation and disconnection from their employer haven’t helped. 38% flagged how their general physical wellbeing had been negatively affected. Just 15% said they had seen no negative impact on their wellbeing.

The survey also pointed to growing strains being created by staff needing to cover for colleagues who were furloughed or self-isolating. 19% said they’d needed to work harder. 11% admitted to feeling resentful about the situation.

In response to the findings, Rachel Suff, senior employment relations adviser at the CIPD, has emphasised the need for greater support for people managers: ”More responsibility has been put on line managers… [with] expectations they will be able to support people’s health and wellbeing and manage staff, but this isn’t matched by an investment in training managers.”

“The unprecedented nature of the Covid-19 environment is creating a host of new and complex stresses and strains for workplaces and HR,” says EAPA chair Eugene Farrell. “Existing issues have been amplified, a heap of new anxieties have been added to them.

“Good, regular communications from line managers is imperative – people need to know, as much as possible, where they stand. But managers can’t be expected – and don’t have the expertise – to handle all the individual issues and crises that occur for staff in their private worlds. They need to be able to identify when there’s an issue and guide team members towards the range of professional advice available from an EAP, not as the emergency option, but as an everyday source of people who will listen and help.”

No way out for workers ‘trapped’ by Covid-19

A summer of redundancy announcements and job insecurity means more people being forced to stay in roles they have outgrown or dislike.

Research carried out on behalf of the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) among 2,000 workers has suggested one in ten employees are currently looking for a job move, despite the state of the employment market – the main reasons being boredom, poor relationships with colleagues and a lack of a sense of recognition for the work they do.

Another study by a health protection company among employees of SMEs in July has claimed that around 50% of employees plan to look for a new role ‘after Covid-19’. The research pointed to the lack of benefits offering among SMEs as a reason for the lack of engagement.

EAPA chair Eugene Farrell said: “We’re in a situation where a number of different tensions are bubbling under. Lockdown was alarming – but for many employees it also meant a break to routine, an easing of pressures and a chance to take stock. The return to work phase has been less a return to normality than moving to a very difficult new reality, more change, new burdens of responsibility. Old wounds are being exposed to even harsher conditions. 

“The risk is high levels of presenteeism; employees who see the ongoing crisis conditions as a reason for being unmotivated; and worse, more staff affected by physical and psychological illness and unable to contribute.

“The most resilient organisations will be those able to generate a positive sense of security, that problems of all kinds can be worked through. Even if their role doesn’t feel like the best for them right now, they’re not trapped, because they’re part of a community – supported by professional services like an EAP that’s with them every step of the way. Getting advice and support means being able to keep a sense of perspective and balance.”

Wellbeing programmes still need the proof of good data

A lack of good quality data continues to undermine the status of employee wellbeing initiatives, claims REBA, the Reward and Benefits Association.

From its survey of 309 wellbeing, HR and employee benefits specialists REBA found a striking increase in the number of organisations making use of management information to assess the effectiveness of wellbeing programmes, up to 92% from 74% in 2019.

But the actual value of the information was questioned: participants believed the biggest problems were the limited availability of data (49%), and its poor quality (43%). 36% said their organisation lacked the right data collection method; 31% didn’t have the required data analytics; and, 25% the expertise to analyse the data effectively.

REBA has highlighted how employers continue to measure the impact of employee wellbeing through ‘proxy’ measures such as changes in reported employee engagement. Other findings from the research pointed to how mental health continues to be the primary employee wellbeing concern for senior management – with 78% reporting plans to introduce mental health/resilience workshops this year.

EAPA funded the development of an EAP Return on Investment calculator with the Institute for Employment Studies in 2019. The calculator has led to the collection of more than 2,000 examples of employer calculations to date.

“The REBA research confirms the long-standing frustration of everyone who works in employee wellbeing,” said EAPA chair Eugene Farrell. “We know how important it is to organisations, their performance and stability, now more than ever before. But trying to quantify such a mass of variable factors will always be a trial.

“The ROI calculator is based on IES expertise and banks of previous research in order to provide a sensible, realistic guide to financial returns from the use of an EAP.  It’s also a useful way to check on different models, what the difference would be to ROI from changing the level of investment, an awareness campaign to increase usage etc. The more employers who use the calculator tool, the richer the dataset and the more useful it becomes for benchmarking – and for making conversations with the FD about wellbeing that bit more straightforward.” 

What interventions are most effective for improving and maintaining mental health at work? 

New research undertaken by the Institute for Employment Studies (IES), commissioned by the Employee Assistance Professionals Association (EAPA) and the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) explores the effectiveness of workplace counselling. 

The Covid-19 pandemic has led to an upsurge of workplace stresses and concerns, with many employees experiencing significant changes to work and life. Finding the best forms of support for employees will be an essential concern for employers, especially as they begin to manage future workplace adjustments and the possible return to the office.

The research report, Demonstrating the Effectiveness of Workplace Counselling: Reviewing the evidence for wellbeing and cost-effectiveness outcomes, draws on a rapid evidence review of recent literature on workplace counselling, in addition to convening an expert roundtable to collect the views of experienced practitioners. 

The report aims to promote an understanding of what workplace counselling is, its purpose and the evidence-base underpinning its use. In addition, the report discusses the future of workplace counselling and ways that its benefits and impact can be more widely understood.

Both the literature and roundtable evidence suggested that, if implemented and utilised effectively, workplace counselling is positive for both employees and organisations committed to providing support, minimising sickness absence, reducing presenteeism and maximising job retention and vocational rehabilitation. At a time when many will be returning to workplaces after a sustained period of uncertainty and potential ill-health (both mental and physical wellbeing), this form of support is especially important for both employers and employees.

The report identifies several future research questions which will improve the evidence-base for workplace counselling. These include: 

• The need for both more contemporary and high-quality research evidence and employer and employee education about the benefits of workplace counselling for a range of clients and in different employment settings (eg workers in smaller companies). 

• Research investigating the relative effectiveness of different models of workplace counselling. 

• Organisational and service user views of workplace counselling (to gain different stakeholder perspective).

Commenting on the research, report author Dr Zofia Bajorek said: “The impact that the Covid-19 pandemic has had on mental health and wellbeing has highlighted that organisations, employers, HR and wellbeing managers should be focussing on what interventions are most effective for improving and maintaining mental health at work. 

This research has highlighted the important role that workplace counselling can have in supporting employee mental health. If implemented, promoted and used effectively, workplace counselling has the potential to provide timely support that can minimise an employee’s sickness absence and presenteeism, help their mental wellbeing, and also show that organisations do value their staff. 

“With this on-going period of anxiety and uncertainty that has occurred as a result of Covid-19, and how this will continue to effect workplaces, job security and working patterns, now is the time for organisations to focus on what will work best for their employees – and workplace counselling could be a simple yet practical solution for providing support to their employees.”

Kris Ambler, Workforce Lead for the BACP comments: ‘The report is the welcome result of a detailed exploration of the effectiveness of workplace counselling and, along with recent research publications, the results are clear; counselling works. Modern, progressive organisations operate in increasingly complex environments, and they need a workforce that is adaptive, resilient and well supported. Workplace counselling, as part of wider commitment to staff wellbeing, could be key to giving businesses a competitive edge.” 

Julie Hughes, Chair of the BACP Workplace Executive argues that the benefits of workplace counselling go beyond traditional measures of ROI, saying: “Many employees and customers choose organisations that are more in line with their own values. Showing you care about the welfare of employees helps secure stronger commitment from staff, supports the development of more diverse workforce and attracts the best talent.” 

Eugene Farrell, Chair at EAPA said: “A key finding from the report has been the need to know much more. The research indicates that there needs to be more collaboration among stakeholders and employers in particular, sharing available data on how counselling services are being used and why; to be more involved with evaluating the impact and value of counselling, the different forms of ROI and the modes of counselling that work best for different groups of employees.” 

Andrew Kinder, Vice Chair at EAPA and BACP Governor added: “From being a ‘nice-to-have’ service and the ‘right thing’ to offer employees, EAPs and other forms of counselling have become a fundamental part of an organisation’s risk and resilience. There has to be more clarity and certainty on what works, and that will mean putting evaluation at the heart of a wellbeing strategy.”

The report is available from https://www.employment-studies.co.uk/resource/demonstrating-effectiveness-workplace-counselling