- EAN staff is available when our office is closed to help you manage personal crisis or traumatic events in the workplace. Call our office at 828-252-5725 and press ‘0’ to reach our crisis management team member by phone.
This is an ongoing content series on the current EAN website. We have set it up again here so you can continue to use it (if you like.)
Q. I am the manager of a library in a large city. Periodically, people living on the street wander in and may behave in disturbing ways. One threw a book on the floor recently and screamed at it. It was upsetting. One employee took a “sick day” afterwards. Can the EAP help us manage this sort of stress?
A. Although most people think of libraries as quiet and serene job settings, they are public places. Many have security staff, but they can’t prevent all incidents. Support for staff can manage stress and reduce turnover. For employees who are upset, suggest seeing the EAP, or refer employees whose performance has been negatively affected in the aftermath of a “patron incident.” Ask the EAP to visit with your staff and educate them about mental illness. This can demystify and educate employees about mental illness in general and boost their resilience. It can be scary facing someone experiencing psychosis. They may become agitated, or have unpredictable behaviors. The EAP can offer suggestions for interacting with problem patrons, or you can discuss these incidents as a group to generate a set of protocols if such a plan does not currently exist. EAPs are versatile. Call on their ability to help you in creative ways.
Q. Is there research that points to marijuana’s adverse effect on productivity in the workplace? Most people know about the impact of alcoholic workers and the high costs associated with alcohol abuse. Cannabis does not seem to have the same amount or degree of information.
A. Research on the adverse impact and cost of cannabis use in the workplace exists, but it is not as plentiful or as widely shared as research on alcoholism and alcohol abuse. This is explained in part by the large difference in research funding related to alcohol abuse and alcoholism and the length of time such funding has been available. Additionally, there is no “alcohol lobby" with a substantive goal of discrediting alcohol research, unlike the marijuana lobby, which actively seeks to discredit unfavorable research on cannabis. A2020 research study on the adverse effects of marijuana use in the workplace showed that cannabis use before and during work negatively relates to task performance and organization-aimed “citizenship behaviors” (willingness to help others), and it contributes to counterproductive work behaviors. The study was published in “Group and Organization Management Journal” May 2020.
Q. I think most employees don’t like hearing negative feedback, even if they are sitting calmly and listening to it. This awareness, in my opinion, causes supervisors to avoid annual reviews. This is not fair to employees. Any tips for this problem?
A. Few employees enjoy negative feedback, but your goal as a supervisor is not to make negative feedback painless but to make it understood and effectively communicated so it is useful. Follow these steps. 1) Be sure your employees know the goals and objectives of their position. A complaint commonly heard by EAPs is “I don’t know what my boss wants me to do.” 2) Make corrective feedback tangible and measurable so employees can gauge their progress. 3) Don’t lecture or criticize employees personally. 4) Give feedback soon and often so your employees never “wonder” what you are thinking about their performance. 5) Always mention the positive aspects of an employee’s performance. Doing so will not undermine the corrective feedback. Just the opposite. It will increase your employee’s receptivity to the negative feedback. 6) Discuss what change and success will look like if the feedback is acted on. This gives the employee a specific goal to work toward.
Q. Why does enabling of alcoholic employees happen even if coworkers are well-educated about these behaviors? Everyone in our company has had alcohol and drug awareness training. Enabling was thoroughly discussed. A few of my colleagues socialize with those they know are alcoholics but say nothing.
A. Those most familiar with an alcoholic’s personal life will naturally practice more enabling behaviors. Coworkers may benefit socially from the drinking pattern, excitement around it, and the social leadership a nearly-stage alcoholic may exhibit. Parties are livelier, jokes louder, and creative ideas for fun may always be at the ready. These enabling friends may hesitate to confront the alcoholic because they know change will jeopardize their social life and prompt loss of what has been valued. Enablers may explain away this unwillingness to confront the alcoholic by viewing the drinking pattern as “functional alcoholism,” which is characteristic of the enabler’s own denial. On the positive side, these same individuals often have great influence when a crisis occurs and treatment becomes necessary. Their ability to speak directly and convincingly can motivate the alcoholic to accept help. They are valuable players in interventions.
Q. Our company engages in a lot of after-hours socializing. It’s part of our work culture. Customers are always included. Drinking and a bit of rowdiness are not unusual. I’m nervous about sexual harassment. No incident has occurred, but I would like to prevent one from ever happening. Any tips?
A. The casual atmosphere and drinking may be a risk issue for your organization, especially if there are expectations that employees participate. It’s important that employees be aware of the sexual harassment policy and their responsibilities. There must be prompt reporting and communication with a trained manager if an incident occurs. Customers are the lifeblood of your company. If they act inappropriately, you will be at risk of minimizing their behaviors out of fear of offending them. This is an important awareness .Employees who experience behaviors they believe are offensive or unwanted should not be subtly discouraged from complaining. There is much to consider when employees and managers socialize after hours. Boundaries may feel loosened, but corporate responsibility is not. Consider having your EAP provide sexual harassment refresher training periodically if this is part of its role. This can help employees and demonstrate your commitment to a safe and positive workplace.
Q. If an EAP referral is not a punitive program, why do employees become resistant to formal supervisor referral for job performance issues?
A. Although education and awareness about the EAP reduces the stigma associated with seeking help, understanding how employees react to constructive confrontations and referrals can help supervisors better manage resistance. When you confront an employee about job performance issues, a natural reaction is to deny or minimize the validity of your complaint. The complaint is viewed as criticism, and defensiveness is the response. Accepting the EAP referral is tantamount to agreeing with your complaint. Hence, the resistance. Employees may be defensive for other reasons, of course. These include fear that the program won’t be confidential, fear of a permanent record of their participation, stigma, and experiencing anxiety over anticipated disclosure of a personal problem that the employee feels he or she can still resolve (alcoholism, etc.) To reduce defensiveness, discuss these issues early in your meeting. Like a salesperson, address the resistance issues up front in order to make the “sale.”
Q. I am not sure I buy the argument that the opioid addiction epidemic is strictly due to so much supply by pharmaceutical companies. Opioid addicts I’ve known (at least a couple of employees over the years) were also alcoholics. What’s the connection, and why don’t we hear more about this?
A. Dependency on opioids can be rapid depending on dose and type, even for nonalcoholic persons. Following instructions is crucial. This is the crucial message about opioids that serves the public. That said, alcoholics who become dependent on opioids may struggle more with drug cessation. Why? Remember, alcoholism isn’t simply alcohol dependency, per se. Alcoholism is a disease process that eventually results in impaired social and/or occupational functioning, and pathologic organ changes like damage to the liver, heart, and nervous system. Decades of enabling by others may also accompany it. The life problems alcoholics experience exacerbate their illness, but if they also become addicted to opioids, the compounding effect of crises can be severe. These circumstances may explain what you have observed, but millions of people from all walks of life become dependent on opioids. Knowledgeable physicians resist prescribing opioids to alcoholics, but the real challenge is people with family addiction histories or those in very early-stages of alcoholism being at higher risk for opioid addiction, and not knowing it.
Q. I supervise a diverse group of workers from around the world. Many, I think, would not visit the EAP for counseling help. How can I better motivate these workers, whose culture may discourage sharing personal problems with others, to consider using the EAP?
A. When correcting performance issues of employees or helping them resolve workplace problems that interfere with productivity, view the EAP as a resource, but avoid discussing clinical aspects of the EAP. Certainly, EAPs assess and may counsel on personal problems, but the business rationale for the program is not based on counseling. It is based on improving productivity and preserving human resources. Likewise, supervisor referrals are based on performance issues. So it is appropriate to focus on EAP strictly as a performance-enhancing resource. This will help resistant employees see the EAP as a more attractive resource. Ironically, this view of the EAP as a “productivity improvement program” may yield more referrals and help for “at-risk” employees. It’s natural for employees to hesitate sharing personal information, but EAP professionals are experts at working with clients at their pace and avoiding pressuring clients to disclose information they aren’t ready to share.
Q. I have two very smart employees who are constantly in conflict with each other. I hesitate to refer them to the EAP to resolve their issues because I think they will manipulate the EA professional, who may not be a match for their ability to manipulate. Should I refer anyway?
A. Your employees may not be motivated to resolve their differences, at least not yet. Their sense of urgency to deal with the issues between them will not be greater than a consequence for remaining in conflict and interfering with workplace productivity. Like many supervisors, you hold significant leverage and the ability to influence them toward the goal all three of you share. The question is, how long will you continue to tolerate the problems between them? It is easy to unwittingly reinforce this sort of dysfunction between workers by asking for change, pleading, coaxing, and meeting in private to “get serious” but without truly holding workers to account. So without taking a stand and deciding on an effective consequence, you can expect the problems they are experiencing to continue indefinitely. Start by meeting with the EAP alone, and decide on a plan you can live with, then refer.
Q. Can supervisors consult with the EAP about other things related to our role as a supervisor, even if the subject has nothing to do with managing a troubled employee?
A. Like any employee, the EAP is available to discuss and resolve problems you experience. This includes issues of supervision, your role, management principles, etc. If the EAP can’t assist you because of a lack of its direct experience with the issue you bring to the program, it can still research and what resources can assist you. Note that all of us have manifest problems that appear in our lives. These roadblocks to other goals may be difficult to surmount because of our psychological issues, scripts, self esteem problems, etc. These are the less visible but latent issues the EAP may help you spot and troubleshoot in your pursuit of the ultimate goal.
