An employee assistance plan or EAP is an employee benefit program intended to assist employees in dealing with personal problems that might adversely affect their job performance, health and well-being.
Employee Assistance Plans can include support in a number of ways, the most common being short-term counselling. Examples of support include things like substance abuse counselling, occupational stress counselling, counselling for emotional distress or health care concerns. Additionally, support can be provided for individuals who are stressed or anxious about a wide variety of things including financial stress, family or personal relationships, and work relationships.
As an employer, offering an Employee Assistance Plan is a great way to encourage positive pro-active response for employees who are suffering and this attention, whether early intervention or as a response to a particular situation or episode, can decreased medical costs, reduce turnover and absenteeism and encournage higher productivity.