The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada
The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada
Log in

Employee Assistance Program (EAP) Report to the 2018 AFS Annual General Meeting

I was pleased to continue to serve as the AFS Chair of the Employee Assistance Program

The objective of the CRA’s Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is to help employees who may be experiencing personal, health or work-related problems by making available to them and their families an effective, confidential, neutral, and voluntary EAP, without prejudice to job security or career progression.

This year CRA removed Referral Agents from the EAP program based on the 2017 Audit, Evaluation, and Risk Branch Rreport.   From the report:

  • The Referral Agent role is viewed as no longer addressing a need to foster employee and organizational well-being
  • Interviews with Health Canada revealed that most federal organizations do not have a RA role.(the current CRA external provider in the Atlantic and Pacific)
  • The majority of employees  ... who have used or would use the EAP would not reach out to a RA and would prefer to have first contact with trained mental health professionals, CCs or ESPs, to maintain confidentiality and ensure no prejudice to their job security or career progression.
  • In addition, the management of the RAs was assessed as concerns were raised that the CRA may be open to legal liabilities. These concerns related to the RAs:  (i) not being trained mental health professionals; (ii) capacity to act and to work within the parameters of their role; and (iii) capacity to assume and deal with the potential stress associated with this role.

CRA has professional counsellors and all employees have access to the External Provider which provides short term counselling .  There is no change in funding for services provided for professional counselling.

The AFS group supports the removal of Referral Agents and looks forward that members will continue to be served by professional health counsellors.

Mental Health is becoming more of an issue as the work shifts more from Physical work to Intellectual(Mental) Work.  As the pressure to meet Legislation & Program Deadlines and a Culture of  Focusing on Cost Savings exists within the Agency the mental stress on AFS members has been increasing on a year to year basis.  For 2016, 49.0% of Total Long term Disability Claims were for Mental Heath Conditions.

In terms of employee usage:

11.52% of employees accessed EAP in the last year, 

5,435 cases were opened  (4,835 Employees and 600 Family members)

The top three issues are

1.  Family 36.4%

2.  Health - Emotional/Mental  36.4%

3.  Work Issues 14.1%

EAP is also used for Advisory Services by Managers. Union Representatives and HR Professionals. 

EAP workshops were held for 5,066 employees of which 1,914 were managers

The challenge going forward is to maintain an improve the benefits and services our members(including their families) have so that they have the resources, support and time to deal with any personal, health or work issues.

Allaudin Alibhai