Dan Feerst published America's first EAP blog* in 2008.* This blog offer EAP training program and resources to boost EAP utilization, reduce behavioral risk, and improve the effectiveness of employee assistance programs (EAPs) America's oldest and #1 EAP Blog by world's most widely read published EAP content author, Daniel A. Feerst, MSW, LISW-CP. (*EAPA, Journal of Employee Assistance)
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
EAP Newsletters: Pipelines for Higher EAP Utilization
The workplace wellness newsletter is still under-appreciated for its value in reducing human and financial losses in the workplace. I think most companies separate wellness newsletter topics away from other education and training that reduces human behavioral risk in the workplace, and this a mistake. It's why I encourage using some newsletter device that combines all behavioral risk reduction content in one source document. I am beginning to think that reducing employee behavioral risk and exposures is better served by small pieces of ongoing, easily digested information, ongoing awareness information, and training in addition to whatever one-shot training topics are offered or mandated by the company.
I agree with the wellness newsletter premise that it is a tool to support management first and employees second. This does not make it incompatible with helping or even entertaining employees. However, anything that a business organization institutes should be to its benefit or it is by definition or it is not in conformance with mission and goals of the organization and therefore is improper. The goal of a employee wellness newsletter should be in my opinion--a conduit for education, information, training, awareness to positively influence employees to practice better behaviors that reduce risk, enhances organizational productivity, and improves their personal well-being.