Why Does an Employer Need an Employee Assistance Program?
Personal issues such as family, marital, drinking, gambling, drug abuse, emotional, legal, or financial problems at work may cause performance problems and negatively impact productivity. Behavioral or personality changes can cause decreased quality and quantity of work product and customer complaints. These problems affect your bottom line - costing 25 percent of those employees' salary. It may also cause tardiness, absenteeism, reduced efficiency, accidents, overuse of medical benefits, and judgment errors, adding significant costs to your business.

What Services Are Provided?
First we help you design an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) based on the needs of your com-pany, your employees, and their families. We then draw up a contract outlining the assessment, refer-ral, counseling and social services we provide, with the understanding that your company will pay a portion of the cost of services received by eligible employees and their dependents.

What Are the Payoffs?

• Employees receive the help they need.
• This program sets guidelines for handling job performance problems.
• Company safety is improved.
• Employees appreciate this caring service.
• The program can improve job performance.

Why Choose Family Services?
We have been providing EAP services to local companies since 1984 and are committed to making them affordable for even small companies. We treasure our reputation for providing high quality counseling services. All our staff have master's degrees in social work or related fields. Some are members of the Academy of Certified Social Workers and/or licensed in Pennsylvania. Our organization is a private, nonprofit United Way agency.

Is There Consultation and Training to Employers?
It is important that we train managers and supervisors to recognize and document employee performance problems so they may make referrals to the program. Supervisors should welcome EAP as a resource to help them improve the performance of those for whom they are responsible.

Is an Employee Assistance Program Confidential?
Employers and employees appreciate the confidentiality of an EAP. All services are strictly confidential as outlined in our agency Confidentiality Policy. As required by this policy, we must report all cases of suspected child abuse to Childline, the 24-hour Department of Public Welfare hotline. It helps even top management and supervisors feel comfortable using the service. If a supervisor refers an employee, the supervisor will only be informed if the employee is being seen, if goals have been established, and if progress is being made. If the employee is self-referred, information is not released unless the employee gives permission. Your company will get a formal report about the types of problems presented, the services provided and the outcomes - without naming names.

How Can WeGet Started?
If you would like further information about our EAP Services, contact our EAP director at 814-944-3583, write to us at
Family Services
2022 Broad Avenue
Altoona, PA 16601,
or send us e-mail info@familyservicesinc.net

What is an Employee Assistance Program?

It can happen to any of us. A problem at home can be so difficult to handle it affects your performance at work. An Employee Assistance Program (EAP) offers counseling and referrals to troubled employees and their dependents. Provided as a benefit by thoughtful employers, an EAP can also help the company keep valued employees and reduce economic and human losses.

An EAP identifies troubled employees, motivates them to accept help, assesses their problems and resources, helps them develop a plan of action, and provides or refers them to needed services.