Employee Assistance Programme. Frequently Asked Questions.

You’re an employer who cares about their team, but an Employee Assistance Programme sounds very complicated, here we explain why ours is great for your team and your business.

How do I support team wellbeing?

You may already know of employees struggling with pressures at home or work so it’s definitely important to consider how best to support these employees as these pressures impact mental health and in turn, the way people do their jobs which can result in reduced performance, lack of focus and absence. This can lead to lost productivity and potentially significant recruitment costs.

What exactly is the EAP?

Hospitality Action’s Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) is an assistance line supported by a comprehensive care package of services and beneﬁts that takes a holistic approach to employee welfare. Like the industry it serves, the assistance line is open 24/7, 365 days a year and includes a translation service for over 170 languages.

The benefits available include access to personal counselling, legal guidance, addiction support, debt advice, parenting helpline, elder care helpline and a whistleblowing service. Uniquely among EAP providers, should a hardship grant be required by any recipients of EAP support, we’re able to point them towards HA’s grant-giving team for consideration for further support.

By introducing an EAP, you’ll provide a comprehensive and confidential resource to support your employees’ mental health and wellbeing, helping them to focus on their job and preventing issues escalating in the workplace. This in turn builds loyalty to you as an employer. And all for just £5.95 plus VAT per employee per annum, with minimum pricing for businesses with under 50 employees.

What makes a successful EAP?

One of the main factors influencing the success of an EAP is regularly communicating to the team the benefits of accessing the programme. An effective launch generates interest, awareness and usage of the services so review all the options already available to ‘talk’ to employees via printed material, online or face-to-face. HA offer a wide variety of printed and online material, in a variety of languages, to help promote the programme to the team and regularly attend launch events. We also work closely with each client to design regular and varied marketing communications that highlight the positive outcomes of engaging with the EAP and don’t just focus on the negative issues. Securing senior management support is also essential demonstrating to employees that your business is serious about caring for their health and wellbeing.

Need help?

If your company is already signed up and you need our support, visit our WellOnline portal or call 0808 802 2111, we’ve got you.

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Can the EAP help with issues like addiction, domestic violence and sexual harassment?

Since launching the EAP in 2013, we’ve researched all challenges facing those who work in our industry. Whether drugs, alcohol, gambling, depression, bullying, harassment, anxiety, stress, illness, lack of work/ life balance or financial pressure are the problem, we can help. All EAP subscribers can access our online portal, Well Online, which has over 200 factsheets covering all these topics and more, which is a great place to start to find out the services we offer and signpost employees to resources. Additionally, if a grant is also appropriate, our grant-giving team can provide further help and support.

Will my young team really want to talk to someone rather than go online to find help?

We’ve found that under-30s are just as likely as over-50s to want to talk to someone about the issues they are facing, and really value the coaching and advice that our assistance line counsellors can provide, 24/7. Sometimes just having a ‘listening ear’ can make all the difference when stress, anxiety or depression strike. Of course, if an employee prefers to email us, live chat or download a factsheet, those paths are also available.

It provides our staff and managers with an invaluable support system for a wide range of challenging personal issues – many of which require more expertise than we can rightly expect our managers and HR team to have.

Richard Ball
Executive Chairman, Calcot Hotels

Hospitality Action carries out fantastic work and we have always been aware of how they support those within in the industry. We value our staff’s well-being above all things and adding the Hospitality Action EAP to our existing benefits package is a great way to ensure that we continue with our commitment to employee engagement and well-being.

Phil Roker
Managing Director, Vacherin

What support can you offer if my business is affected by a traumatic incident?

The EAP can provide onsite support for traumatic events such as a terrorist incident, the unexpected death of a guest or colleague, or armed robbery. As an employer, you have a duty of care to protect employees from psychological harm as well as having consideration for their physical safety. On-site support provides psychological first aid helping teams and their managers to cope.

How does the EAP support HA?

Any surplus we make from the EAP is re-invested into HA’s other programmes, for example, our Golden Friends Befriending Programme for industry retirees, or our Family Days Out scheme, which gives those on low incomes much-needed leisure time together. Joining the EAP really is a virtuous circle: client companies not only support the welfare of their teams, they also help us support the welfare of some of the most vulnerable people in the hospitality industry.