Transcript Document

Work Life Trends:
Forecasting Challenges for
Tomorrow’s Successful EAP
Jeff Mintzer, MSW, CEAP, WLCP
Federal Occupational Health
Associate Director, Work/Life Services
Agenda

About Federal Occupational Health (FOH)
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The Employer Case for Work/Life
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Work/Life Trends That Impact EAP
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Key Initiatives and Best Practices
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Discussion
About FOH
 Created in 1946 by an amendment to the
Public Health Service Act
 Part of the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services, Office of the Secretary,
Office of the Assistant Secretary for
Administration and Management
 Became fully reimbursable in 1984, operating
with no Congressional appropriations
FOH Services
FOH works with 360 Federal Agencies
 Comprehensive Occupational Health Services
 Employee Assistance Programs (EAP)
 Work/Life Services
 Wellness/Fitness Centers
 Health Promotion and Education
 Environmental Health and Safety
FOH Program Objectives
 Improve workplace productivity
 Reduce employee absenteeism
 Enhance employee morale
 Improve recruitment and retention
 Develop ‘employer of choice’ status
 Improve the bottom line
Human Capitol Management Issues
 Economic recovery will bring new challenges for
retention and productivity
Retaining high performing employees; reducing brain drain
Managing to higher productivity is key to being more
competitive
Managing costs is still priority #1
 Workforce demographics are changing
48% of the U.S. Labor force is 40 or older!
Average age of federal work force is 48
 Employees are more aware of the value of their
benefits
 A health-wealth connection is emerging among
employers and their employees
The Case for Work/Life Support in the
Federal Workplace
 In May 2009, OPM Director John Berry cited
“improving work life and workplace conditions”
for federal employees within one year as a shortterm goal1
 Child care, elder care, telework and workplace
health clinics were included as primary areas of
focus
 Improving work and family balance is a primary
goal of President Obama’s White House Task
Force on Middle Class Working Families
 VP Biden’s Task Force on Middle Class Working
Families will focus on “helping parents keep their
jobs while balancing family responsibilities”
 54% of federal government employees have either
child care or adult dependent care needs, or both2
1 Washington
22006
Post, May 27, 2009
dependent care survey, conducted by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management
“Workplace flexibility
isn’t just a women’s
issue. It’s an issue that
affects the well-being of
our families and the
success of our
businesses. It affects
the strength of our
economy…..the
workplaces and jobs of
the future we need to
complete in today’s
global economy.”
President Obama, White House
Forum on Workplace Flexibility,
March 2010
Key Shifts in Work/Life Trends
 Child care dominated the first 20 years of the work/life
movement
Today, child care is still critical, but it is no longer the only focus
Elder care, aging and back up care issues have become increasingly
important
The family unit has evolved to a new model of diversity and
complexity
 Wellness is no longer an optional concept
It impacts the workplace culture
It’s not limited to employees
 Financial stability has become more critical
to the workforce
 Flexibility and emotional resiliency are
increasingly critical to organizational success
Five Key Work/Life Trends
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Caregiving
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Health and Wellness
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Financial Pressures
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Evolving Needs the Non-Traditional Family
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Flexibility and Resiliency
Caregiving: A Different Paradigm
 Caregiving in the US has become a broader
and more challenging responsibility
 Close to 30 percent* of people in the US
are responsible for caring for either
children, adults or both; including
disabled young people
 Of this population, 73% of them are
employed and face regular challenges
that impact productivity and retention
 For the past 3 years, FOH cases related to
caregiving (adult and child) accounted for
over 40% of all casework
 In 2009, the percent of FOH adult care cases
surpassed child care cases for the first time
*National Alliance for Caregivers, Caregiving in the U.S. 2009
Caregiving: Its Effect on Employees
 The vast majority of caregivers –
70% - make significant changes to
their work situation*
 Leaving the workforce, working parttime, changing jobs, increased
absenteeism and presenteeism are
possible side effects
 Caregiving has a significant impact
on an individual’s physical, emotional
and financial wellbeing
 As the baby boomer generation ages,
there will be a correlating increase in
the number of workers who will
become part-time caregivers for
elderly loved ones
*National
Alliance for Caregiving, Caregiving in the U.S. 2009. and 2008
Caregiving: Its Effect on Employers
The estimated average additional health cost to employers is 8% more
for those with eldercare responsibilities - $13.4 billion more per year1
11% more for blue-collar caregivers1
18% more for male caregivers1
The average caregiver costs an employer $2,110 per year in lost
productivity2
18% of female adult caregivers miss an average of 33 work days per It’s estimated that
year due to caregiving demands3
73% of caregivers
10% of male adult caregivers miss an average of 12 work days per
also work regular,
full-time jobs!
year3
Employee absences and turnover related to adult care costs American
Source: AARP
employers as much as $33 billion per year2
The cost to replace the 2.4% of employees who leave work to be
caregivers is $6.6 billion per year2
1 MetLife, Working Caregivers and Employer Health Care Costs 2010
2 Met Life Caregiving Cost Survey: Productivity Losses to U.S. Businesses, 2006
3 National Alliance for Caregiving At-Risk Working Caregivers 2008
Caregiving: Programs and Best Practices
Consultation and Education
Resource and Referral Service
Professional Care Management (PCM)
and in-home
Legal and Financial Consultations • Face-to-face
assessments
• Facility reviews
Employee Assistance Programs
• Post-hospitalization assessments
• Customized care plans
One-on-one counseling
• Ongoing care coordination
counseling and guidance
Work-site based support groups •• Ongoing
Worksite education and support
Backup Child and Adult Care
Professional Care Management
Services
Health & Wellness: Current Situation
The number of employers offering wellness programs has doubled as more react to
soaring medical costs and the demonstrated ROI of such programs:
 Total health care costs have more than doubled in a decade—from $4,793 in
2001 to $11,058 in 2010—and are expected to continue increasing over the next
10 years1
 95% of companies say managing costs is a top business issue1
 7 out of 10 deaths among Americans each year are from chronic diseases2
 Top 5 health co-morbidities driving productivity losses are depression, obesity,
arthritis, back/neck pain, anxiety3
 For every $1 spent on programs, $3.27 is saved in health care costs and $2.73 is
saved in terms of absenteeism-related expenses4
1
Hewitt, 2010 Annual Health Care Trends Survey
CDC, Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, 2010
3 Loeppke et al., JOEM 2009;51(4):411-428
4 Health Affairs, February 2010
2
Health & Wellness: From the White House
 President Obama praised the efforts of organizations that have seen
their bottom lines improve by giving employees programs, incentives,
and mechanisms to prevent disease
 FOH FedStrive has been positioned as the focus for a holistic approach
to effective delivery of EAP, Wellness and Work/Life
 Pilots at HHS and OPM will identify linkages
“As a result of many
 Access current capabilities; inventory programs
successful programs at
 Create awareness: market and communicate the model
businesses across the
country, workers have
 Engage and deliver seamless integrated services on-site,
become more engaged in
telephonically and web-based
their own health care,
 Measure and report on participation, engagement, outcomesproductivity is increasing,
absenteeism is dropping,
and employers are passing
some of their healthcare
savings to their workers.”
President Obama
Health & Wellness: FOH Programs and Best
Practices
 FOH
 Web-based disease-specific Health Risk
Assessments (HRAs)
 Participation rate approaching 28%
 Individualized Health Counseling
 Agency Utilization Reports
 Medical Screenings
 Blood pressure, Cholesterol, Blood Glucose
 Medical Screenings Paid by Employee or
Insurance
 Osteoporosis, Mammograms, Stroke
Screenings, Prostate (PSA)
Legal and Financial Guidance
The economic situation has prompted a “Recessionary Thread”
 70% of employees are highly concerned about the ability to pay bills
during sudden income loss and 61% are concerned about having
enough money to make ends meet1
 51% of employees want advice about investing their retirement funds
and 38% want advice about their financial needs1
 EAP call volumes are 40% higher with cases emerging around coping
with potential job loss, loss of a family member job, financial stress,
legal stress, situational depression
 FOH experienced a 45% increase in utilization of financial and
legal counseling services in the first quarter of FY 2009
1 MetLife 2010 Study of Employee Benefits Trends
Financial Guidance: Programs and Best
Practices to Support Families in Crisis
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Recognize and support “stress” associated with financial issues
Refer to the EAP and other employee support resources
Expand access to include household members
Offer free consultations with professionals
Produce educational programs, including seminars and
workshops
 Support access to online calculators and interactive resources
 Provide ID theft and recovery services
 Enable legal document preparation and review
The Non-Traditional Family: New Views
 20 years ago day care was the
primary work/life issue
 There’s more diversity in the family
structure
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“The children and caregivers
in grandfamilies face serious
physical and mental health
challenges and obstacles.”
Generations United: Fact Sheet Grandfamilies:
The Challenges for the Second Family 2007
Single parenting
Grand parenting and guardianships
Multi-ethnic, multi-racial households
Gay and lesbian parenting
Adoption/foster parenting
 With change comes new challenges
and great opportunities
 Today, flexibility and managing
both “halves” of a busy life is more
common
2.4 million of the nation's families are
maintained by grandparents who have
one or more of their grandchildren
living with them ― an increase of
400,000 (19 percent) since 1990
U.S. Census Bureau, 2000
The Non-Traditional Family: Challenges
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Employer attitudes
Require more flexible work schedules
Financial issues
Legal issues around custody, support and parental rights
Challenges in getting access to benefits and medical
coverage
Health and emotional needs of the “parent”
Housing needs
Changes in retirement plans
Barriers within the educational environment
Emotional and psychological issues that impact
productivity
Impact on the development and skills of children
The Non-Traditional Family: Programs and
Best Practices
“New” Best Practices
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Senior management support
Recognition of the emotional impact
Celebrate diversity
Maintain boundaries between work and home
Hone time management skills
Reward performance at every level everyday
Develop partnerships to support this unique workforce
Develop of a new set of “benefits” to address the needs of new
families
Flexibility: The Benefits
 Reduces health care costs and
enhances employees’ overall health
 Improves job performance and
employee retention
 Puts a positive spin on employee
productivity, commitment and
loyalty
 Lowers absenteeism and turnover
 Reduces hiring and re-training costs
 Positions organization as “employer
of choice”
Flexibility: Programs and Best Practices
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Job sharing
Sabbaticals
Telecommuting
Alternative hours
Caregiving leave programs