How to refer an Employee to the EAP

As a supervisor, you are in a position to recognize when an employee’s job performance deteriorates. In some instances, you may decide to refer the employee to the Employee Assistance Program in an effort to help the employee solve any personal, mental health or substance abuse problem that may be contributing to the problem. Below are some recommendations to follow when you decide to refer an employee to the EAP.

Steps you should take when you have identified a performance problem and are going to discuss it with the employee:

• Document the performance problem
• Get yourself ready
• Set the stage
• Use constructive confrontation
• Refer for assistance
• Follow up on progress towards meeting performance goals

Documentation can include:

• The name of the employee
• The date, time and location of the incident
• A short summary of the supervisor's observations
• Any involvement of witnesses
• The action the supervisor takes to intervene
• The employee’s response

Documentation provides:

• The employee specific evidence of the performance problem
• Objective factual information
• The performance picture over time
• The supervisor the ability to recognize the pattern of declining performance
• The means to prevent future meetings with the employee from being “his/her word against yours”
• Support for the corrective action process

Get yourself ready

• Discuss the matter with your supervisor and/or a Human Resources representative
• Discuss the problem with the Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Prepare what you are going to say in advance and make notes
• Discuss the performance problem with the employee without delay, before it becomes more serious

Set the stage

• Meet with the employee in a private place where interruptions will be limited
• Choose the best time of day considering workload and the employee’s behavior
• Allow sufficient time for the meeting, but set a time limit
• Make an appointment with the employee in advance
• Allow for union representation, if appropriate

Constructive confrontation

• Tell employee you are concerned about his/her job performance
• State problem
• Refer to documentation of specific events
• Avoid over-generalizations
• Ask for explanation
• Avoid getting involved in discussions of personal problems
• Try to get employee to acknowledge what you see as the problem
• State what must be done to correct problem
• Set time frame for performance improvement
• Specify consequences if problem continues

Refer for assistance

• Focus only on performance problems
• Do not attempt to determine whether alcohol, drugs or personal problems are part of the cause
• Assure employee that you are not assuming that there is any kind of problem
• Acknowledge that performance problems are sometimes caused by personal problems
• Advise the employee that it is his/her responsibility to consider whether or not his/her poor performance is caused by an underlying personal problem.
• Refer employee to the EAP
• Emphasize the confidential nature of the EAP
• Be clear about your expectations of the employee’s performance and his/her participation in the program
• Continue to monitor job performance
• Apply progressive discipline as needed
• Notify the EAP if performance continues to decline