Identifying a Troubled Employee

Did you know that one in ten employees suffers from depression?  Depression costs employers tens of billions of dollars each year.  It's the leading cause of absenteeism and lost productivity in American companies today.  According to the National Institute of Mental Health, offering minimal programs to help employees cope with depression could result in a nearly $3,000 savings per 1,000 employees over five years.  How do we curb the impact of this disease and get our workforce back on track?  Start by recognizing the signs of a troubled employee.

Calling in sick.  Employees battling depression, anxiety or severe stress may often lack the energy to face another day.  If you notice a worker is frequently absent, tardy or leaving early and doesn't have a solid excuse, it may be a sign that the employee is battling an emotional crisis.

 

Difficulty concentrating.  Troubled employees often struggle with their daily responsibilities, taking more time or effort to complete the job and becoming easily or unnecessarily frustrated.

 

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.  Depression may cause workers to display uncharacteristic mood swings and spasmodic levels of productivity - high one day, low the next.

 

Deteriorating job performance.  If you notice a once-productive employee becoming progressively lackadaisical about the job, missing deadlines, turning in subpar work, making poor decisions or generating complaints from customers or co-workers - make note of it.  It may be a sign of emotional trouble.

 

Interpersonal conflict.  Depression can rise to the surface in angry outbursts or criticism, causing rifts between employees. 

You can point employees toward help with compassion and professionalism.  Encourage them to contact the counselors at your employee assistance program (EAP).  Don't have one?  Call us at (920) 727-8700 to learn more about how an EAP can help you regain lost productivity.

Critical Incident Stress Debriefing 

Trauma, injury, violence, disaster... these are more than just unpleasant words.  When it happens to you, they become emotionally crippling experiences.  In clinical terms, these are called "critical incidents."

Critical incidents occur in the workplace.  Whether you experience one firsthand, witness one or are held responsible for the safety of others, a critical incident can have an overwhelming emotional impact.  Industrial accidents, vehicle accidents, natural disasters, threats or violence in the workplace, suicide or death of a co-worker... all of these can leave a scar on a company's well-being.

"No one is untouched by being witness to, or victim of, such an unusual event," says Bob Carroll, Affinity EAP counselor.  "Stress - both emotional and physical - is a normal response to an abnormal situation."
  
As employers, you are charged with a tall order - to handle the emotional side of a critical incident in your workplace.  Employees will look to you to offer support, resources, even explanations.  This is called "critical incident stress debriefing," which means taking the lead in helping employees cope with stress in troubled times.  How does it work?  Read more.

News to share with employees 

Warning Signs of Stress

So far today you've showed up late to a meeting, spilled coffee on your desk and got into a heated argument with a co-worker.  Pretty impressive, considering it's only 8:12 a.m. 

"Workplace stress is common and can be healthy when channeled constructively," says Kathleen Schiltz, EAP counselor.  "But when it gets out of control, it can lead to problems with your health and relationships."

Are you more than a little on edge?  Here are some warning signs that your stress is past its limits.

What a pain.  Got a headache?   Recurring upset stomach?  These are some nasty ways stress shows up to taunt you. 

Losing the snoozing.  Can't sleep at night?  Or maybe all you want to do is sleep, regardless of the time of day.  Both are signs of unchecked stress.

Space cadet.  Difficulty concentrating, daydreaming or struggling to juggle multiple tasks at once - all are red flags that your stress is out of bounds.

Picking fights.  Does your temper feel like a burning stick of dynamite?  A short fuse, especially when it leads to conflict with co-workers, is one way stress rears its ugly head.

Take this job and @%!  If you finished this sentence with enthusiasm, your stress might be getting the best of you.  Excessive stress can lead to job dissatisfaction even for the most loyal employee. 

How low can you go?  Stress leads to job woes which lead to low morale.  Do yourself a favor - before dragging yourself and your co-workers to the depths - get some perspective on your stress.  Talk to your EAP counselor or a trusted friend.

Resolving conflict at work 

 Ever feel like the referee in a sparring match between employees?  Let's face it, there are very few of us who actually enjoy conflict.  Yet with deadlines, personal lives, differing personalities, organizational changes and sometimes limited resources, conflict is bound to happen in the workplace.  As supervisors, you can help turn conflict into an opportunity for change.

Know When to Step In
Team leaders have a responsibility to address conflict when it interferes with the organization's goals. First ask yourself: Is the conflict affecting the quality of the work environment, the product itself or the ability to be successful and productive? Are conflicts getting resolved among parties or is the same conflict occurring repeatedly, perhaps with the same people?

If employees are not able to resolve their own conflicts, supervisors can step in and help employees resolve the trouble constructively.  Start by asking the employee these questions: 

Rules of the Ring
Regardless of what the conflict is, sticking to a few guidelines might make the resolution easier to come by. Read more.

You know employee health is tied directly to productivity.  But budgets are tight.  How can you afford an employee assistance program?  The real question is - how can you NOT?

-- Stress costs American employers $200 billion per year.
-- 75 percent to 90 percent of visits to primary care physicians are related to stress.
-- For every dollar invested in EAPs, a $5 to $7 loss is avoided.
-- EAPs can reduce sick leave by 37 percent.
-- 10 percent to 15 percent of all employees have serious problems affecting their work performance.

Affinity offers a cost-effective EAP, locally operated and priced affordably for your company's provident pocketbook.  Our counselors are experts in short-term, solution-focused therapy.  We understand the impact personal problems can have on productivity, absenteeism and safety, and we work to resolve issues for the benefit of your employees and your bottom line.  Affinity EAP offers four convenient locations throughout Oshkosh and the Fox Cities as well as an interactive web site. 

For more information, call us today at (920) 727-8700 and ask for Lisa or Holly in the Sales department.

Not sure what to look for when selecting an EAP?  Click here to learn more!

A: Successful EAP promotion is an ongoing activity that needs to be woven into the broad-based communication and health promotion activities of a business or organization.  Consequently, it is the process of having this planned "built in" targeted approach, spread throughout the organization and over the course of the year, that stimulates awareness of EAP services and increases comfort in accessing services.  I will briefly discuss some of these program promotion components.

 

Read more.
 

Tina is married to Tom, her high school sweetheart. In their spare time they like to visit their cabin in northern Wisconsin, where they enjoy hunting or taking the four-wheelers for a spin. She also enjoys gardening, planting trees, reading and spending time with her family.    

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