news
03 Sep 2007 - 13:46: Europe - The Changing Face of Employee Support
For a long time, wellbeing programmes and in particular Employee Assistance Programmes (EAPs) were considered as a benefit offered to employees in US and UK organisations, an ‘anglo-saxon concept’, ill-suited to the economic, social and cultural fabric of continential Europe.
The landscape in Europe is however changing. Whereas health and wellbeing were only discussed when a problem arose, today’s European corporations are beginning to see the benefits of a proactive, preventative approach. A combination of the factors above has led to an increased acceptance and understanding of EAP’s in Europe.
It is however important to remain realistic, awareness at organisational level is still relatively low, and many still turn to the state as the first point of call when health and wellbeing issues arise. Finding an EAP provider capable of offering local support, who understands local promotional needs remains key.
Many ‘international’ EAP providers did not help matters, referring European employees to US call centres and lacking the financial clout to invest in local, culturally relevant information such as legal and financial advice and child and eldercare services.
One of the few notable exceptions to this has been PPC Worldwide. PPC has set up a robust and reliable European network, staffed locally, with culturally relevant services, delivered in a way to reassure individuals and increase utilisation.
For more on Health and Wellbeing and EAPs in continental Europe, please contact:
Nick Malhomme, Head of European Development
nicholas.malhomme@ppcworldwide.com
+44 (0)1865 397000
To read the full article click on the pdf below
Europe - The Changing Face of Employee Support.pdf (0.69 MB) Adobe Acrobat Document