OVERVIEW
Every Federal agency has an Employee Assistance Program
(EAP), which has a goal to restore employees to full
productivity. More specifically, the EAP provides free,
confidential short term counseling to identify the
employee's problem and, when appropriate, make a
referral to an outside organization, facility, or program
that can assist the employee in resolving his or her
problem. It is the employee's responsibility to follow
through with this referral, and it is also the
employee's responsibility to make the necessary
financial arrangements for this treatment, as with any
other medical condition.
EAPs are available for employees who have alcohol and/or
drug problems who are seeking rehabilitation and the
opportunity to become fully productive members of the
workforce. Managers and supervisors are urged to become
familiar with the EAP and to make referrals and/or
recommend to employees that they seek help through the EAP.
Participation in the EAP is voluntary and, ultimately, it
is the employee's decision to participate or not.
In addition to substance abuse problems, most agency
EAPs provide comprehensive counseling and referral services
to help employees achieve a balance between their work and
family and other personal responsibilities. Job
effectiveness can be adversely affected when employees are
faced with the mental or emotional problems, family
responsibilities, financial or legal difficulties, or
dependent care needs. The EAP can be extremely
important in the prevention of, and intervention in,
workplace violence incidents; the delivery of critical
incident stress debriefings; and providing assistance to
employees during agency restructuring.
To locate the EAP serving your Federal agency, call your servicing human resources office and ask for their telephone number. For additional information about Employee Assistance Programs, download Your Federal
Employee Assistance Program: A Question and Answer Guide
for Federal Employees.
CONFIDENTIALITY
The purpose of EAPs is to give employees the opportunity
to help themselves cope with problems which are adversely
affecting job performance and/or conduct. Employee
confidence in the competence and trustworthiness of the EAP
staff plays a key role in program success. EAP staff
must be familiar with the provisions of the Privacy Act ( 5
U.S.C. 552a(b)) as well as the Alcohol and Drug Patient
Confidentiality Regulation provisions contained in 42 CFR
Part 2. For additional information about EAP
confidentiality, download Confidentiality and the Employee
Assistance Program: A Question and Answer Guide for Federal
Employees.
Information on legal and
regulatory authorities related to the Employee
Assistance Programs, along with agency responsibilities, can also be
found at this site.
TRAUMATIC STRESS IN THE WORKPLACE
Guidance for agency managers can be found in our
handbook, Handling Traumatic
Events: A Manager's Handbook, which describes
concrete steps managers can take to provide effective
leadership after a traumatic event.
REFERRAL/INFORMATION SOURCES
Questions or comments may be mailed
to the Office of Work/Life Programs, U.S. Office of
Personnel Management, Room 7425, Theodore Roosevelt
Building, 1900 E Street, NW., Washington, DC 20415-2000.
You may call us at (202) 606-5520; fax (202) 606-2091; or
email ehs@opm.gov.
NOTE: Under Federal Law,
the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is
prohibited from ranking, endorsing, or promoting
agencies or organizations listed on its Web site.
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