Minutes of the National EAP Advisory Committee

DATE:  March 4, 2014  TIME:  8:30 AM – 11:15 AM

LOCATION:  395 Terminal Avenue, 8th Floor, Room 8006
                       Ottawa ON

PARTICIPANTS:

INTRODUCTIONS

Several new members having joined the Committee, each person was invited to introduce themselves.

OPENING REMARKS

The Director General, Workplace Relations and Compensation Directorate, Claude Tremblay, welcomed everyone, particularly the new management representative, Marc Lacasse, who is replacing Janet deKergommeaux; and Allaudin Alibhai, the new Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) observer, who is replacing Gilles Laprise. Mr. Tremblay also welcomed Geneviève Maurice, the new Corporate Employee Assistance Program (EAP) Consultant at the National Employee Assistance Program Office (NEAPO); he also welcomed Lucie Houle to her new position, since October 2013, as the Director of the National Conflict Resolution and National Employee Assistance Program Offices Division. She is now responsible for the sections of the EAP and the National Conflict Resolution Office, while maintaining her responsibilities managing the Work Force Adjustment (WFA) team.

Mr. Tremblay invited the unions to share opening remarks.

Bill Blair, Union of Taxation Employees (UTE) representative, welcomed everyone. He stated that he was pleased to be a member of the National EAP Advisory Committee (NAC) and expressed a sense of pride for belonging to a committee that functions so well. He also shared, with the Committee, his satisfaction with the Program and the fact that people know about the Program and receive the help they need.

Teekah Ramnauth, PIPSC representative, stated how the Program is an important part of who we are. He believes that the demand for EAP services will continue to grow. He wished to highlight his appreciation of the support provided by management to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) employees. He also wanted to comment on the good work accomplished by this committee.

Lucie Houle agreed with the other members and said that we have a great program. She mentioned that the challenge will be to ensure EAP continues to deliver its services in a context of increasing demands.

1. COMMITMENTS FROM LAST MEETING

NEAPO reviewed the commitments made at the last meeting and the actions taken with respect to each one. Additional items derived from this item will be covered in other sections of the meeting.

The PIPSC representative wished to clarify the measures taken in cases of Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) requests on EAP files. Management has indicated to the unions that no information is disclosed following a general human resources related ATIP request. Instead, the employee is encouraged to contact their EAP Coordinator-counsellor (C-C) if they wish to access their file.

2. 2013-2014 EAP STATISTICS/SEMI-ANNUAL ROLL-UP

NEAPO provided an overview of the semi-annual EAP statistics, covering the first six months of 2013-2014. The overview document and the three-year comparison roll-up were shared prior to the meeting.

Highlights include the following:

• • 6-month utilization rate of 2012-2013 was 7.19% and now stands at 7.64% for the first 6-month period of 2013-2014.

  • Crisis Line Calls remain stable (42 occurrences for 2012-2013 to 40 for 2013-2014).

  • There were two occurrences where e-counselling was used as a modality for counselling from the external service providers (ESP).

  • As usual, the top three presenting issues for counselling services were related to family, emotional/mental health and work.

  • There was an increase in the number of employees seeking EAP assistance for:

    • Emotional/Mental Health (by 15.7%)
    • Work – Workload (30 cases to 43)
    • Work – Total (by 6.6%)

  • A decrease was noted in the following areas:

    • Addiction – Total (by 15.8%)
    • Financial (36.2%)
    • Health – Physical (by 16.2%)
    • Legal Issues (53%)
    • Work - WFA (44 cases to 22)
    • Work/Life Balance (by 36%)

  • Advisory services for managers, union representatives and human resources professionals continue to be well utilized, where 97.1% of manager consultations occurred with the C-Cs.

  • The top presenting issues for the advisory services were mental health, performance management, communication, WFA and change.

  • Types of issues for advisory services:

    • Mental Health (represents almost 22% of all issues)
    • WFA (decrease from 42 cases to 26)

  • The number of hours related to the support given to the local advisory committees (LAC) has remained consistent.

  • There were 11 ʺFocused Conversationʺ intervention sessions offered by the C-Cs compared to 28 for 2012-2013.

  • There was an increase in the number of EAP Orientation Sessions given (43 in 2012-2013 and 129 in 2013-2014), as well as the number of employees attending those sessions. As per the commitment at the last NAC meeting, the NEAPO had asked the regions to ensure that EAP Orientation Sessions were offered at every opportunity. In response to NEAPO’s request, a blitz was done during Mental Health Week. In addition, in some regions, Orientation Sessions were also delivered during the introduction sessions by new service providers. All of this may explain the increase in numbers.

  • The number of Wellness Fairs remained the same.

  • There was a significant decrease in the total number of training sessions provided to employees. Workshops focused on mental health, change and suicidal calls.

  • The total number of training sessions for managers and union representatives had a slight decrease. More than half of the sessions given had a focus on mental health. C-Cs delivered most of the training for both employees and managers.

  • The number of information sessions given remained the same.

  • In response to a request by PIPSC that NEAPO speak to the counselling utilization rates of the past few years, two graphs were presented of regional ESP rates. Overall, the number of employees consulting EAP ESPs has remained stable since 2008. The service is well utilized and employees are aware of their options (internal or external EAP).

A discussion on the nature of CRA’s EAP services, in relation to that of other government departments and the industry followed. Everyone agreed that it is important to promote the Program in order to reduce the stigma related to mental health. The fact that CRA employees are aware of the services provided by EAP is due to the promotion of its services. All the NAC members agreed that the multiple- access hybrid program helps to meet the needs of a larger number of employees, compared to a program with only one point of service.

Interest was expressed by UTE on the decrease in the participation of union representatives in various EAP training sessions compared to 2011-2012. NEAPO, noticing the decrease, had sought clarification on this data from the C-Cs in order to understand potential reasons explaining the decrease. Several factors probably contributed to this decrease. Management explained that in 2011-2012, there was a focus on training sessions for managers and union representatives. Also, since a large number of managers and union representatives received training in
2011-2012, there was possibly less demand in 2012-2013. Management also shared with the unions that, when planning a training session, the information is sent to the LAC members for them to share with their members. Union representative participants, who attend training sessions, can identify themselves as such, but this is not always the case.

PIPSC felt that there was not enough clarity, in some regions, between the C-Cs and the LAC members, regarding their role and responsibilities. They felt that there should be clearer and more precise communication regarding LAC members’ responsibilities. UTE also expressed a concern regarding the fact that some of the LACs do not meet on a regular basis in some regions.

NEAPO will communicate with the EAP C-Cs to remind them of the importance of communicating with the LACs about training sessions offered to the union as well as on the importance of having regular LAC meetings.

The NEAPO and unions will draft a joint communication e-mail to further clarify the role and responsibilities of LAC members.

PIPSC asked if it would be possible to increase the number of EAP sessions to 10 or 12, as some employees may need more than short-term counselling and may not have the financial resources to pay for extra services beyond what is offered at CRA. NEAPO explained that in such instances, EAP ensures to refer the employee to the appropriate, low-fee or free, community-based specialized services.

PIPSC also expressed their interest to have data on the number of cases requiring long-term counselling and those who were referred to community services. NEAPO has the data on the number of referrals to community services but the data on how many employees have used the referral services is not captured because the employee’s decision to access the referral services is voluntary.

NEAPO will provide the data on the number of referrals to community services.

3. MENTAL HEALTH AT CRA

A presentation on Mental Health at CRA was presented by management. This presentation was developed to respond to PIPSC’s request for information on services delivered and potential underlying causes. This presentation included EAP’s trends in counselling for mental health issues, for the past five years;
pro-active initiatives by the EAP in the development of workshops and presentations in order to minimise the impact of changes at CRA on employees’ mental health, resources available for management, unions and employees; tools and resources being developed to help managers/unions address violent or suicidal employees, and much more information.

PIPSC asked if new employees were specifically made aware of EAP services available to them. Management explained that groups of new employees are provided with orientation presentations and material when they start employment, and EAP is part of that orientation package.

Following the presentation, a positive discussion was held and suggestions were made for additional information that could be included in the presentation.

PIPSC was very pleased with the presentation and thanked NEAPO. They expressed concern in regards to the current trends in increases in services requested for mental health. They also felt that it was part of their role to ensure that employees receive the help they need.

PIPSC felt that employees should be encouraged to consult InfoZone to get some information on various subjects, such as EAP services and/or tools, and that a specific activity code should be created. Management stated that the time activity codes are operation oriented and it would be difficult to integrate codes for these activities.

4. LOCAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE

EAP Week

PIPSC indicated that they would like CRA to have a national EAP Week. Currently, EAP Week is an optional activity for LACs and takes place at different times, according to regional preferences. Management explained that due to certain regional workload constraints and depending on the best time to do EAP promotion related activities, it is very difficult to have a national EAP Week for all of CRA. One option would be to celebrate EAP Week at the same time as Mental Health Week.

It was decided that the EAP Week would become mandatory. Changes will be made to the LAC Activity Log and Planning Tool, but the regions will have the flexibility to determine when this week would occur based on their operational context.

Local Advisory Committees

PIPSC shared their impression of a lack of guidance that the LACs are facing, especially when there’s a change of C-C in a region. They state that EAP C-Cs, in some regions, don’t appear to have time to fully support these committees, especially for planning meetings and promotional activities. All LAC members need to be reminded of the importance of their role. PIPSC asked that a message be sent to the regions to remind them of that importance.

Management stated that, due in part to travel restrictions, the ability for the C-Cs to connect with their LAC has been seriously diminished. The LAC training, delivered by the C-Cs, has been developed in order to educate the new LAC members on their role and responsibilities regarding EAP. Management reminded the unions that the role of the C-Cs is ‘to provide functional direction to the committee’. The responsibility to organize and plan LAC meetings belong to the committee’s chair.
The LAC terms of reference indicate that rotation of the chair is permitted. The EAP C-Cs are not always available to attend all the meetings but participate as often as possible.

NEAPO commits to ensuring that regional management are aware of the importance of the LAC meetings, which should be held quarterly, whether the C-C is present or not.

 Both unions would like an article to be included in the next national EAP newsletter explaining the role and responsibilities of the LACs, in order to increase awareness of this committee.

NEAPO will include an article in the upcoming national EAP newsletter (summer 2014) describing the role and responsibilities of the LACs, in order to increase awareness of the LACs and to encourage employees to become members of the committees.

 PIPSC also asked for the data on family members who use the Program.

NEAPO will look into the possibility of providing the data on family members’ utilization of EAP to the unions, as long as the provision of such information does not affect confidentiality.

5. REPLACING C-Cs

 This item has been resolved at the regional level.

6. UTE REGIONAL MENTAL HEALTH CONFERENCES

 UTE offered three conferences to its union representatives last year; in Montreal, Toronto and Calgary. EAP was invited to give a presentation on mental health at these conferences. UTE wanted to take this opportunity to express their great satisfaction with the C-Cs performance in providing these workshops and wanted to congratulate them. Their knowledge on the subject was fantastic and their passion for people was obvious. Participants highly appreciated the presentations and came away with a more profound understanding of mental health in the workplace. They wanted to highlight the fact that C-Cs and the EAP as a whole are an integral part of CRA. The Program is functioning very well and is well recognized.

7. WORKSHOPS/TOOLS/RESOURCES

 UTE spoke of their concern around the fewer number of national employee workshops developed in recent years.

Management recognized that the focus for the past few years had been on workshops for management. For the next round of development, the emphasis will be on workshops for employees. Here are some products NEAPO will be working on within the next couple of months:

• the mental health for employees workshop will be revised;
• a ‘resiliency for employees’ workshop will be developed; and
• a factsheet for survivors will be developed.

Management shared some data on the large number of workshops delivered to employees. There are currently four national employee-specific workshops; four national manager-specific workshops; and three national workshops for employees and managers. Statistics on the number of workshops and participants indicate that EAP C-Cs are offering many workshops to employees.

• Employees: There have been 67 sessions with 1,081 participants, for the first 6 months of 2013-2014.
• Managers/union representatives: There have been 37 sessions with 586 manager participants and 52 union representative participants (638 participants all together), for the first 6 months of 2013-2014.

8. UPDATE

1. Learning Event

• • The Learning Event took place on January 28-29, 2014 in Ottawa; and 15 of the 17 EAP C-Cs attended this event.
  • Positive feedback regarding the Learning Event was received by the C-Cs, via a formal evaluation form.
  • Presenter Stéphane Bouchard, Ph.D. from the University of Québec in the Outaouais provided a half-day workshop on Exposure-based treatment for DSM-5 anxiety and related disorders.
  • Presenter Michelle Bentley from the Crisis and Trauma Resource Institute Inc. provided a full-day workshop on Motivating Change.

2. Orientation Session in Ottawa for New C-Cs

• • A three-day orientation session was offered in Ottawa last October, to three new C-Cs from Pacific, Ontario and Quebec regions on the C-C’s role, responsibilities and expectations.

3. Winter Issue of the National EAP Newsletter

• • A copy of the latest issue (winter) of the national EAP newsletter was distributed to the NAC members.
  • In order to ensure national consistency, there will only be one CRA EAP newsletter which will be issued by NEAPO; there will no longer be regional EAP newsletters issued.
  • NEAPO will ask for regional contributions in the development of the newsletter, to keep CRA employees informed on regional initiatives/news.
  • The newsletter can be distributed as a promotional tool.

CLOSING REMARKS

Claude Tremblay thanked everyone for their input and good work. Management wanted to make a suggestion to the unions in relation to the meeting schedule. To be able to provide complete statistical and annual reports to the unions, it would be beneficial to hold the meetings in September and March.

PIPSC agree to the new schedule.

UTE asked for some time to think about this suggestion.

UTE will get back to NEAPO with their answer regarding the new NAC schedule.

Claude Tremblay proceeded with the closing remarks and thanked Hélène Grandmaître for the presentation on mental health stating that it was very informative. He also thanked the unions for their positiveness and participation during the meeting.

The UTE representative also agreed and thanked everyone. He felt that all the members are on the same side, for the good of CRA employees.

The PIPSC representative added that it is very appreciated to have an opportunity to talk about the changing workplace environment, the new tools, ideas, etc. He also found the meeting to be very productive.

Marc Lacasse shared that he felt very welcomed in this committee and had found the meeting very good and well organized.

The next meeting will be scheduled based on the response from UTE.

Approved by: Claude Tremblay, Director General, Workplace Relations and Compensation Directorate Date: June 4, 2014

Approved by: Bill Blair, UTE representative Date: June 11, 2014 Teekah Ramnauth, PIPSC Representative Date: June 16, 2014