The Benefits of an EAP

By Patrick Burkart, BComm, CEBS

Many employers are aware of Employee Assistance Plans (EAP) but few really understand the benefits that their organizations can reap from them.  The main purpose of these programs  is to provide a
counseling outlet (most benefit plans do not include coverage for counselors, only for psychologists) for employees in a crisis situation.  These plans, more than any other benefit, recognize the human element of organizations.  When employees are dealing with personal issues, their employer can show their benevolence by offering this service.

From a profit perspective, an EAP will limit the amount of presentee-ism amongst the workforce.  By talking and working issues out with Masters level counselors, employees can resolve their issues,  or at least bring them to a manageable level, thus allowing them to focus on their work.  The most obvious benefit, therefore, is a more productive work force.  Other lesser known services offered by many EAPs include financial and legal advice.

What is a benefit really?

By Craig Hewson

CAP Guidelines Do Matter

By Greg Pallone

With all the recent  talk about the PRPP, pension reform, pension adequacy and savings rates, it seems like the Capital Accumulation Plan Guidelines (CAP) which were introduced into the pension  savings universe in 2004, have disappeared onto that dusty shelf in back room no one wants to enter.  The CAP Guidelines aren’t ‘trending’ now and consequently it’s easy for plan sponsors and  many advisors to forget about them.

Self Insurance

By Neil Wallace

Most employer benefit programs are fully insured.  In basic terms, that means in the long run premiums must cover the costs of claims. The insurance company bears all the risk in the short term if the policy holder terminates their coverage before the claims costs are covered.

Read More

Are you paying for something that plan members can get for free?

By Robert Taylor

Few opportunities exist to invest in and enhance benefit programs.  The past decade has seen significant benefit cost inflation driven by drug costs and newer expensive drug therapies.   Although the historical double digit health inflation trend appears to have slowed slightly in the past two years, there remains little appetite to fund additional benefits as maintaining the current funding of status quo, still depletes available resources.