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Medical marijuana, ethics of workplace consultation, future of EAP
Employee Assistance Professionals Association
All these are topics of special "Super Sessions" Thursday afternoon at EAPA's World EAP Conference in Orlando. These specially selected two-hour sessions address the implications for EAPs of legal medical marijuana, ethical complexities of workplace consultation, and new technology that promises to change the future of EAP. They are just three of the 58 educational sessions and unlimited networking opportunities available at this year's conference. There's still time to register at discounted advance registration rates.
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Companies race to adjust health care benefits as ACA takes hold
The Washington Post
Large businesses expect to pay between 4 and 5 percent more for health care benefits for their employees in 2015 after making adjustments to their plans, according to employer surveys conducted this summer.
Few employers plan to stop providing benefits with the advent of federal health insurance mandates, as some once feared, but a third say they are considering cutting or reducing subsidies for employee family members, and the data suggest that employees are paying more each year in out-of-pocket health care expenses.
Sept. 10 is World Suicide Prevention Day
Employee Assistance Professionals Association
Every year, more than 800,000 almost people die from suicide; equivalent to one death every 40 seconds. The number of lives lost each year through suicide exceeds the number of deaths due to homicide and war combined. EAPs play an important role in suicide prevention, as evidenced by EAPA Board member, Randi Wood, who was recently honored for helping Colorado become one of the first states to make workplace suicide prevention a health and safety priority for all State employees through the Colorado State EAP. The International Association for Suicide Prevention and the World Health Organization offer many useful suicide prevention resources and tools to publicize World Suicide Prevention Day for use by EA professionals and others.
Pot is becoming legal in more places, but we should drug test employees anyway
The Washington Post
The movement to normalize the use of marijuana is growing across the United States. Nearly half of states now allow medical use of marijuana and, in November 2012, Colorado and Washington became the first places in the world to pass legislation legalizing the regulated production, sale and recreational use of marijuana.
Now this movement is turning its sights on employer drug testing, arguing that, in an environment that is increasingly tolerant of marijuana use, testing for marijuana is outdated, irrelevant and, in some cases, even illegal.
PRODUCT SHOWCASE
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The Memorial Hermann Precention and Recovery Center (PaRC), located in Houston, Texas is a nationally recognized, TJC Accredited, DSHS licensed, freestanding, alcohol, substance abuse and dual diasgnosis treatment for adults and adolescents. Open 24/7, the PaRC offers all levels of care and is contracted with most insurance companies.
www.parc.memorialhermann.org or 1-877-464-7272
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5 surprising trends in work-life management
Wall St. Cheat Sheet
We often read news stories about poor work practices like super low wages, the trend of part-time work, very long hours, and even wage theft. However, the National Study of Employers suggests some more upbeat news and some surprising trends. The study is an ongoing study of employers with 50 or more employees, and is conducted by the Families and Work Institute and the Society for Human Resource Management. The study deals with trends between 2008 and 2014.
Wellness and EAPs tend to follow industry
Workforce
Wellness and employee assistance programs tend to follow industry, and according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, foreign industry is moving into developing economies.
Eastern Europe is one of those economies.
Foreign investors couldn't be coming at a better time, at least in terms of the well-being of employees. With Europe still in the midst of an economic crisis, governments across the continent have been making budget cuts. Wellness programs, which are traditionally provided by the state, were among the first to go.
Opioid prescription should include risk assessment
Medscape
When Steven Passik, Ph.D., slipped on the ice earlier this year and tore his supraspinatus tendon, he needed rotary cuff surgery and was given a prescription for opioids to deal with the pain — no questions asked.
"They didn't ask me who I am or what I do; they didn't ask me a single question about my risk for opioid abuse," said Dr. Passik, vice president, research, Millennium Health, a company based in San Diego, California, that provides urine and pharmacogenetic testing.
Workplace disengagement increases when employees experience high levels of stress
Management-Issues.com
Employees suffering from high stress levels have lower levels of engagement, are less productive and have higher absentee levels than those not operating under excessive pressure, according to new research from professional services firm Towers Watson. According to Towers Watson's Global Benefits Attitudes survey, levels of workplace disengagement significantly increase when employees experience high levels of stress.
Avoiding depression's devastation — EAP is key
Human Resource Executive Online
When dealing with depression in the workplace, it's essential to ensure that supervisors have the training to recognize the signs of trouble and employees suffering from this widespread and troubling illness have access to resources and tools that can provide much-needed assistance.
PTSD: Grim threats to modern firefighters
The Age
 The ghost gum stands tall and proud in the backyard, a picture of urban serenity. Beneath its branches sits a green and white painted wooden chair, the kind of seat that would not be out of place on your grandparents' verandah. Glen Cavanagh still can't get it out of his mind. This was the chair upon which the young woman stood to climb up into the branches of the tree. She was still hanging there when Cavanagh arrived.
Missed last week's issue? See which articles your colleagues read most.
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