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Employers Note Increased Use of Company Health Plan and EAP

Dec. 2, 2009 — Nearly half of employers noted in a recent report an increase in employee utilization of the company health plan.

According to Watson Wyatt’s 2009 Staying@Work Report, despite layoffs, salary freezes and reduced budgets, employers are ramping up efforts to improve the health and productivity of their workforce. The report also found that employers are finding that more workers are using their health services and experiencing higher levels of stress.

The survey of 282 U.S. companies found:

• 42% of employers note an increase in employee utilization of the company health plan
• 47% of employers are seeing an increase in their workers' use of the employee assistance program (EAP)
• 30% of employers are seeing an increase in workers filing disability claims
• unplanned absence is rising among workers at 22% percent of U.S. companies.

According to survey results, employers are strengthening their benefit programs and initiatives: 51% of companies are planning no change or a slight increase to their health and productivity program budgets, compared with 44% that are planning cuts; 72% of employers have already enhanced their onsite offerings with programs geared toward stress management, EAPs or health coaches, or expect to do so in the next 12 months.

"Companies are finding some relief from high benefit costs by investing in programs that improve the health of their workers," said Shelly Wolff, national leader of health and productivity consulting at Watson Wyatt. "Workers who haven’t lost their jobs are under great amounts of stress and are increasingly turning to their employer for advice, treatment or assistance that goes beyond basic coverage when they get sick. Still, employer initiatives that effectively deal with stress are limited."

Regarding stress, 78% of employers cite excessive work hours as a leading cause of employee stress; yet only 21% of employers indicate they are taking action to address it properly. Lack of work-life balance was cited as a leading stressor by 68% of employers, yet only 38% are taking appropriate action. Another leading cause of stress, fear of job loss, is cited by 67% of employers but is being actively addressed by only 41% of companies.

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