What exactly is an EAP?
An Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is an external service that is typically paid for by the employer, to provide employees and their families with access to professional assistance for personal or work-related issues that may be impacting their mental health, and therefore their work performance.
An EAP aims to enhance mental health and wellbeing, maximise productivity and improve organisational culture.
What sort of services does
an EAP include?
An EAP provides your team of staff - and their immediate family members - with free access to a range of practical services including telephone counselling from psychologists, social workers and other mental health professionals.
Additionally it can provide general health advice, programs for every day life support and even services such as legal assistance and financial management or debt support. A comprehensive EAP can be a valuable resource for employees, offering support in various areas to promote their overall wellbeing.
Why mental health is a critical component of a positive workplace
An EAP helps foster positive mental health in the workplace
By providing access to an EAP, you can offer support to employees who may be experiencing mental health issues and create a supportive environment that prioritises their wellbeing. This can contribute to a healthier and more productive workforce overall.
ACA's special offer to the sector
"We know that the cost of an EAP could be a significant barrier to many of our members - particularly those who are small-to-medium early learning service providers.
We therefore want to make sure that every early learning service across Australia has access to an affordable, high-quality EAP.
The Australian Childcare Alliance (ACA) has partnered with TELUS Health so that we can offer the early learning sector a high-quality EAP at a fraction of the usual cost.
By improving your educators' lives and wellbeing, they will be happier, healthier, and ultimately more engaged and productive in their daily work lives. The long-term benefits are a positive team culture and high staff retention."
ACA President Paul Mondo
What Our Customers Say
"It was a no-brainer for our service. Being able to offer my team of staff a high-quality EAP at such an affordable rate has been a game-changer.
My team feels supported where it counts and I feel it has made a noticeable difference to staff morale. "
Nominated Supervisor at Essence Early Learning Melissa Watts
Regular cost VS ACA/TELUS Health cost
Most EAP packages to employers require the employer to pay an annual subscription fee (a fixed fee) plus additional charges - a fee per staff member and/or fee-for-service charges, depending on the services being accessed by staff, such as the counselling service.
Below is a comparison of the estimated usual cost of an EAP versus our special offer to members.
Estimated cost per year based on price model of most EAP packages to employers
- Approximately $2,000 - $5,000 as a base annual cost, PLUS $90 per staff member per year or a new fee for each service accessed (plus GST).
Eg. For a service with 30 staff members, the cost could be $5,000 per year (plus GST).
ACA/TELUS Health offer to early learning service providers
- $24 + GST per staff member for ACA members; and
- $31 +GST per staff member for non-members.
That's it - there are NO additional costs.
Here's what you get
- 24/7/365 Telephone support
Phone support is available 24/7 for urgent calls, calls that are non-urgent will be scheduled with an appointment at the time of their initial contact, usually within 1-2 days of the call. - Telephone & video counselling via appointment
Staff members & their immediate family members can access up to 3 telephone or video-based counselling sessions per personal issue (unlimited issues per annum) - Nurse Hotline (during business hours)– Phone support for those who may be feeling unwell, or someone they know is feeling unwell, and aren’t sure whether medical assistance is required or may be remotely located and cannot access in-person healthcare assistance easily.
*PLEASE NOTE: The service is not designed to replace emergency services.
- Manager Hotline - Support Services & Consultations provides clinical advice and coaching for people leaders, this is in addition to your organisation’s allocated EAP sessions.
- 24/7/365 Online Support - through the TELUS Health EAP app, website with optional intake managed via live chat.
- TELUS Health One App – comprehensive support and resource library
- CareNow self-guided digital clinical support covering over 30 topics.
- Total Wellbeing Index – measure the health of your own wellbeing with de-identified, aggregated reporting to understand the health of your entire organisation.
What about the privacy of my staff?
Confidentiality is a crucial aspect of an EAP. That's why any TELUS Health EAP benefits received by your employees or their family members remain confidential.
This means that while you - the employer - pay for the service, you do not have access to specific information about any of your employees' use of the service, such as who is using the service, the reasons for seeking assistance or how often employees are making use of it.
This is an important detail - it means that your staff members can trust that they are engaging in a private and confidential support service, which can encourage them to seek the support they need without fear of judgement or repercussions.
* PLEASE NOTE: Under duty of care, confidentiality may be broken in instances where there is a deemed risk of harm to an individual or those around them, destruction of property or as ordered by law.
Got more questions?
We know signing up to an EAP is a big decision, and you'll probably have lots of questions around the detail of the program.
We recommend you read through our set of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for a full picture of how the EAP works.
How to get started
If you're ready to subcribe to our EAP for ACA members, just complete the online form.
Upon receipt of payment, you'll receive an email providing you with everything you need to get started and inform your team about their very own EAP.
