EAP NewsBrief

Application period for new EACC Commissioners ends June 3

14 May 2013 09:17:34 CDT

The Employee Assistance Certification Commission is seeking qualified applicants to serve on the Commission for three-year terms beginning at EAPA's 2013 World EAP Conference in October. Applications must be received by June 3. The EACC is the credentialing governance body responsible for establishing and upholding the standards, policies and procedures for the Certified Employee Assistance Professional (CEAP®) credential. Commissioner travel, hotel and meals associated with attendance at face-to-face EACC meetings are reimbursed by EAPA. Applicants must be current CEAPs and members of EAPA. For more information, click here. To complete the online application click here.

Sleep deprivation creates significant presenteeism costs

14 May 2013 09:17:34 CDT

Recognizing nap rooms are not enough, employers are getting more to the heart of the sleep-deprivation problem to ensure workers catch a few more zzzz's.

Report shows 71 percent of UK companies now offer EAP

14 May 2013 09:17:34 CDT

Improving employee engagement is the top objective shaping the benefits strategies of U.K. employers in 2013, according to a new benefits research report. Fully 71 percent of all U.K. employers now offer EAP services to their U.K. employees, up from 60 percent in 2009. Nearly half (49 percent) also offer EAP services to their expatriates based outside of the U.K.

Canadian standards strengthen employer liability for employee psychological damage

14 May 2013 09:17:34 CDT

Beyond productivity issues, there is another compelling reason for employers involved in Canada's oil and gas business — both big and small – to pay attention to mental health if they aren't already. With the new voluntary standards on workplace health and safety released by the federal government, the legal case for employees to hold their employers liable for psychological damage is strengthening.

Employee health incentives: Myth or miracle?

14 May 2013 09:17:34 CDT

The debate over workplace wellness incentives is becoming more pronounced, as some are saying that they don’t motivate workers to improve their health while others contend they can be crucial to boost program participation and outcomes.

Flu during pregnancy may trigger bipolar disorder in offspring

14 May 2013 09:17:34 CDT

A new study finds a risk factor for bipolar disorder may be having a mother who had the flu when she was pregnant. The authors are calling for future studies to confirm this link. If confirmed, they hope to discover what about the flu virus may trigger the disorder.

Study: 39 percent of UK employees say their work and home lives are out of balance

14 May 2013 09:17:34 CDT

Employee respondents in the U.K. believe their employers fail to support them in striking a balance between work and their personal life, according to research by global management consultancy Hay Group. The research, which was compiled using data from Hay Group's global employee opinion database comprising more than 600,000 U.K. employees, found almost two-fifths (39 percent) of employees feel that their professional and domestic lives are not in equilibrium.

US work-related deaths top 150 a day

14 May 2013 09:17:34 CDT

Roughly 150 people died from work-related illness or injury per day in 2011, according to a new report the AFL-CIO. Fatal workplace injuries claimed 13 lives per day, while work-related illness and disease killed an additional 137 people daily. Although occupational fatality rates have trended downward in the years since the passage of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, the gradual improvement of workplace safety seems to have halted in recent years.

Study: 88 percent of dads pass on paid paternity leave

14 May 2013 09:17:34 CDT

Since Yahoo announced recently that it would begin offering new dads eight weeks of paid paternity leave, and twice as much maternity leave for new mothers, consumer groups and media outlets alike have lauded the policy as "generous." But a study published in 2012 by researchers at the University of Virginia and the University of Connecticut found that only 12 percent of fathers took paid parental leave when it was offered, compared with 69 percent of mothers.