Personal and work-related stressors experienced by
employees can result in substantial costs to employers in the
form of employee absenteeism. Employee Assistance
Programs (EAPs) provide an important vehicle to assist em-
ployees with behavioral health issues, personal concerns, and
work-related problems that impact employee absenteeism.
This study tested the impact of EAPs on reducing employee
absenteeism utilizing a well-matched control group and hu-
man resource timecard data. The study recruited employees
from 20 areas of state government and used a prospective,
quasi-experimental design with propensity score matching.
EAP (n = 145) users were matched to non-EAP (n = 145)
users on baseline demographic, psychosocial, and work-
related characteristics that differentiate the groups. Hours of
sick time recorded were provided by human resource offices.
Differences in sick leave usage were tested using mixed model
repeated measures. A steeper decline in sick leave usage for
EAP than non-EAP employees was found, with estimates of
4.8 to 6.5% fewer hours lost per month to illness. Further
analysis found that EAP services were most effective in help-
ing clients move from moderate to low levels of sick leave
rather than in reducing sick leave for those experiencing
chronic absenteeism. Research on the effectiveness of EAPs
rarely utilizes well-matched control groups and frequently relies on self-reported outcomes. Using an objective measure
of work time lost, this study provides empirical evidence that
users of EAP services tend to reduce their absenteeism at a
faster pace than non-EAP users experiencing similar chal-
lenges to maintaining productivity.

EB00000003860K

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• The Effect of Employee Assistance Services on Reductions in Employee Absenteeism