Many of today’s Mainland-based EAP’s have changed over the years to a counseling service primarily for employees, often primarily telephone-based.
WorkLife Hawaii, formerly Hawaii Employee Assistance Services, has a 25-year history of serving Hawaii’s employees and Hawaii’s businesses. This combination of helping employees at the same time we’re helping businesses is what made us Hawaii’s oldest and largest EAP.
We provide personal, local expertise to the challenges of dealing with problematic employees, offering our customers management consultations and coaching in these areas. We deal with these difficult situations daily and are able to give employers creative solutions in solving these problems and managing the associated risks. Just helping the employee isn’t enough. Helping managers and supervisors (and business owners) through difficult situations really helps make a difference in the entire company’s organizational culture. When leaders feel empowered and supported to deal with the worst part of their job –handling difficult situations with challenging employees – they are more able to do their jobs well and contribute to the company.
We also help companies at a deeper level – assisting them in the prevention and response to substance abuse issues, through reorganizations and organizational changes, and through their worst days through critical incident services – in a way that helps companies demonstrate they care about their employees at the same time they are supporting their employees to be more productive.
We’re Local
One of our strengths is that we understand your business. We live here. We understand the economic issues, the cultural issues, the realities of living and working here.
Mainland-based EAP companies just aren’t able to serve businesses in the same way. They’ll take your phone calls, they’ll eventually refer your employees a local counselor they found somehow, but they aren’t able to respond to your business needs in the same way. By having staff here that work together, we get to know your business through the employees who come in to see us, by the trainings we do, and by the management consultations we provide. We are able to help your company with organizational issues we see (or you see) because we start to see patterns and have the kind of personal relationships with company leadership that allow us to make an impact. We watch out for the company’s best interest at the same time we’re serving its employees.
And yes, unlike one of our Mainland competitors, we know exactly how long it takes to drive from Oahu to Maui….
We’re Nonprofit
As WorkLife Hawaii is a part of Child and Family Service, the oldest and largest non-profit human service organization in Hawaii, we are a non-profit EAP.
For some companies, the only difference this means is that our rates tend to be more competitive as we don’t add GET to our fees.
For some companies that have ties with Child and Family Service or are interested in sustainability, this means much, as our EAP work helps support the work of the many programs at Child and Family Service, from domestic violence shelters and family counseling programs to programs that serve our keiki through our kupuna.
For other companies, it’s that we’re able to be more than just a business looking after our own bottom line. Yes, we clearly understand and appreciate bottom line issues, and we are a business that needs to cover costs to survive, but we also have a deep-rooted organizational culture grounded in going above and beyond, serving more than profiting.
We have 25 years of History
As Hawaii’s oldest EAP, we have simply been doing this work longer and have a number of long-term, loyal relationships with a variety of companies, referral sources, and a strong organizational culture. Because we have been able to serve some companies over years or decades, the relationships that have been built truly help serve the companies we serve. When a supervisor has a question, they don’t hesitate to call us. When the organization has a change, they call us. When we go to a Benefits Fair, employees come up and talk with us about how they used us years ago.
This in turn aids in utilization of the services, because especially in Hawaii, it’s all about relationships. We live on islands, and people talk. If you provide good services, your business grows and lasts. We’re planning on being here for a long time, and we’re committed to doing what it takes to help your business.
We help companies with Risk Management
One of the hidden benefits of our EAP services is how we help companies avoid risk. Clearly, helping employees with Substance Abuse issues decreases a company’s risks of accidents, health care costs, and even death. Helping employees with a host of other issues also decreases risk. Employees in a domestic violence situation bring risks to a company – as the violence often follows them to the workplace. Employees who are depressed also bring increased risks. It is the same with untreated mental illness, distressing family situations, unreported harassment, workplace violence, etc. All of these situations bring risk to the company. And all of these situations, if seen by EAP, will reduce potential risk to the company.
And, of course, there is the constant threat of litigation. Disgruntled employees, worker’s compensation claims, FMLA… the list goes on and on. EAP is a way for companies to reduce their risk. If an employee wants to sue their company and they go to a counselor, even some counselors that work for Mainland EAP companies, they will find an ally. If an employee comes to WorkLife Hawaii for these issues, they get another response. Not a challenge, but a neutral reality-based sounding board, and one that will not help them sue their company. We can help employees work toward resolution of their issues with their companies, but we won’t help them with litigation or by documenting their difficulties.
There is another form of Risk Management that will be discussed further in the Critical Incident section – that comes with helping individuals and teams recover from events that may otherwise cause them to quit, or to sue, or to develop post-trauma issues and symptoms. First Responders learned years ago that after a critical incident, there are things teams could do to help individuals and teams recover. Now other businesses have learned the same thing, that after a robbery or a workplace violence incident, or a disaster or a death, that coming together for a debriefing or defusing can help the recovery process and help teams get back to work faster and stay at work.
We help companies with Substance Abuse
Whether it is educating employees about substance abuse prevention, helping employees who come in struggling with issues around their use of alcohol or other drugs, or assessing employees who have violated company drug-free workplace policies, WorkLife Hawaii protects the company as well as offers troubled employees alternatives. We support employees toward becoming drug-free, sober, productive, and healthy. This will help them not only stay employable, but the impact will be felt in their families for generations to come.
We help companies with Reorganization
When companies are considering any kind of a reorganization, especially one that may involve layoffs, we can assist in planning for how this may impact the human side of business.
We help companies with Conflict Management
By assisting individuals or teams with conflict, WorkLife Hawaii helps businesses and employees get back to work again. Through coaching, consultation, or training, there are a variety of ways we help Hawaii's businesses find creative ways to conflict resolution.
We help companies with Crisis Management
We respond to a variety of “Critical Incidents” at the workplace – accidents, violence, death, layoffs, etc. – to support and retain employees and teams and increase productivity and morale.
We help companies with Formal Supervisory Referrals
See the section on Formal Supervisory Referrals for how this can be such a helpful management tool, and such a powerful way of getting troubled employees the assistance they need, as well as documenting that the company is trying to help.
We help companies with Training and Development
We provide Training and Development programs to enhance employee well-being, assist managers with the human side of business, and assist the company with training needs.
We help with Management Consultations and Coaching
When managers and supervisors take advantage of free coaching and consultation on some of the more challenging aspects of dealing with the human side of business, this helps everyone. Many managers aren't used to dealing with the variety of unusual situations that come up in the workforce and running a situation by an expert at WorkLife Hawaii helps them feel more confident and ends with a better result for the company and for all the individuals involved. Whether it's an issue involving diversity, threat, harassment, personal issues, etc., we can help coach managers into doing the right thing.
We help companies help their employees
Most companies in Hawaii do care about their people. Many have a hard time demonstrating this without jeopardizing their business. When employees are struggling with complicated issues such as domestic violence, addictions, depression, family situations, and anxiety, the best thing for a company to do (rather than give advice that may get the company into trouble) is to refer to the EAP. It shows the company cares in a way that doesn't add risk to the company.
