The employee benefit you didnt even know you have

The employee benefit you didnt even know you haveThe employee benefit you didnt even know you haveProductivity is important to employers and finding ways to maximize your output at work is often a big part of their job. Because of this, employers know just how difficult it can be when the rest of your life spills over into your 9-5. Insomnia alone costs businesses mora than $63 billion a year in s-lost productivity in the United States, giving your boss a big incentive to help you find a way to get moresleepWhen you factor in all of the lost production, wasted hours, and on-the-job injuries caused by financial woes, relationship problems, addiction issues, and other personal distractions it becomes abundantly clear that helping employees address their problems at home can reap big financial rewards for the company. Because of this, more than half of the employers in the U.S. offer an Employee Assistance Program to help you take care of personal problems before they become an issue at work.Whats an Employee Assistance Program?An Employee Assistance Program, more commonly known as an EAP, is a set of products, discounts, and services an employer can offer to their employees that is specifically designed to help them be a better,more functional employee. This can range from small things like discounted memberships to the gym to larger, more complex services such as mental health benefits. There are dozens, if not hundreds, of different EAP plans for an employer group to choose from, so you will need to check with your HR department to verify whether or not you have a plan available and, if so, what the specific benefits are with your EAP.While the purpose of an EAP is to help you be more productive at work, the benefits of the program are worth so much more than that. Your boss might only be paying for your gym membership because itsaves them money on sick days and health insurance claims, but being stronger and healthier is valuable for you whether or not it ever makes you a better employee.What kind of problems can an EAP help you address?Depending on what kind of Employee Assistance Program your employer chooses to offer, you could have access to multiple benefits through the program. The simplest versions of these plans typically offer discounts on services like gym memberships, weight loss plans, cleaning services, and financial programs designed to help you budget and save. They also usually have an online system where you can access dozens of articles on how to do everything from eating a more nutritious diet to preparing a will.The next level of an EAP typically offers all of these things along with a phone line where you can call and speak with a trained professional who can help guide you through some more difficult issues. Generally speaking, they have people trained in legal, financial, and health related industries who can help guide you through your problem or refer you to a professional who can better assist you. The most comp rehensive EAP plans offer one on one counseling or group therapy at no cost to the employee. For example, because an employee who needs mental health services might not have the easiest time accessing the benefit through their health plan (either due to a lack of providers in the plan or an insurmountable deductible) some EAP programs offer a handful of free visits with a mental health provider. Group or individual therapy is typically also made available for those people battling addiction or other medical issues that are difficult to address through health insurance alone.Some Employee Assistance Programs even offer free or discounted child or elder care in addition to the other benefits provided by the plan. Youll want to review the coverage through your employer carefullyto make sure you arent missing out on any amazing benefitsDont have a problem? Thats okay, an EAP can still helpJust because everything in your life is going well doesnt mean there is no benefit to having an EAP . Many Employee Assistance Programs offer benefits designed to help you move up the ladder at work, providing coaching in communication, conflict resolution, management techniques, and other skills to help you increase your value as an employee.An EAP can also be helpful when everything in your life is on the right track. Buying a home? Your EAP might have resources to help you with that, with everything from articles that will help you betterunderstand the process to possible partnerships with financial institutions that can help you with your mortgage. Having a baby? Your EAP will have all sorts of information available and possibly have discounted rates for child care through certain providers.The best part? EAP services are confidential.By and large, EAP services are kept confidential from your employer. You dont have to worry about your boss finding out you needed to see a mental health provider or that you are fighting addiction issues. Of course, because every company is diff erent you will want to verify confidentiality with anyone you speak to about your EAP if that is important to you, but the vast majority of the time you dont have to worry about your information being shared with your employer.Whether you are starting a new job or have been with your company for years, asking your HR representative about your Employee Assistance Program is a smart move. If your employer says they dont offer an EAP to their employees you might want to recommend they look into adding the benefit as a way of increasing productivity at the office. An EAP is good for both you and your boss, so dont shove that brochure into the back of a desk drawer and forget about it, take advantage of the plan to change your life for the better

Why You Shouldnt Have an Office Affair Using Work Email!

Why You Shouldnt Have an Office Affair Using Work EmailWhy You Shouldnt Have an Office Affair Using Work EmailIm elend going to talk about the ethics of having workplace affairs or affairs in general, especially if youre married. Thats up to you. But if youre using your office email to correspond with your lover better think twiceIt may or may leid be specifically mentioned in your Employee Handbook (assuming you even have one), but most employers consider their email system to be their property. And many prohibit workplace romances outright. So if youre sending secret emails to someone in your company using company email address, your words may come back to bite both of you.An office email affair to remember (after being fired) I once worked for a financial company where one of the Vice Presidents (no pun intended) welches having an affair with a woman in another division. And despite his being an otherwise savvy member of the IT unit and knowing this was against company policy, he never imagined that their emails were being eagerly read by the email tech team.Knowing how things really work in such places, it probably only became an issue because he had strong opinions and voiced them often, most likely offending the wrong someone at some point. And his being married only added to the juiciness of the story. Interestingly enough, it was the woman who was fired, NOT the male VP.I made a point of bolding the part about who got fired, since that is not an uncommon outcome. So while the moral decision is your own, remember that there can be far-reaching consequences to your career including accompanying stories and rumors that get passed on and can even be found online long after by new employers.Is it really ok for an employer to check your email?Company email If youre using email that goes through their servers, then the answer is most likely yes According to employment attorney Donna Ballman (Can Your Boss Read Your Email?) If you are emailing to and from you r work email address, then that address is probably your employers property, not yours.In fact, in the case of the VP, I was told that the emails made it to the top of the cant wait to read the next one list. And it was all legal since they were corresponding using their employee email addresses and not even trying to use code of any kind. Just oh baby I want you now type emails.Unless otherwise stated, if you use company email there is no privacy guarantee, although in most cases no one is reading it. But it is there and easily found if needed for any company reason, such as an investigation or law suit. And, there have been cases of snoopy employees just reading for fun.Personal email at work Personal email is trickier. If neither you nor the person youre writing to are using company email, then in theory that should remain private. BUT its important to note that opened personal emails can be seen by the company, since at that point the contents reside on the company servers.More from Ms. BallmanIf you open your personal email on a company-owned computer, phone or other device, those emails may sit on your companys server indefinitely. Some companies even use key-logging programs that may capture every keystroke you use, including passwords If they use those on work devices, the company will have access to their personal emails. While the odds of this happening are slim and legality questionable, technology does make it possible for an employer to store your keystrokes and passwords and then use them later on to peruse (hack) your personal email. Still, unopened emails on 3rd party systems should be safe.Some final thoughts Can you sue your employer if your rights are violated? Depends on the specifics of the situation and your own ability to both fund and handle a lengthy legal process. But as it drags on, most likely your career and perhaps marriage will be in the dumpster.Should you run right out and buy encrypting software that you install on every one of your office devices? Or should you make it a policy to never again write anything of a personal nature at the office? Thats up to you, of course, and your particular situation. Neither would be my first choice.Still, since that time, Ive had an awareness that my work emails could be read and have acted accordingly. So if you are doing something you need to keep secret or saying something nasty about a co-worker or boss, you might best save it for when you are not on company time or equipment.What if you feel you were discriminated against? As in the example above, if youre a woman who was fired while the man involved was not, should you pursue a lawsuit against your employer? Or what if you suspect there was some other potentially discriminatory factor behind your treatment, something beyond the surface facts?Some thoughts on the matter, including a link to EEOC information about filing a lawsuit= What If You Were Fired Due To Employer Discrimination? More career articles you m ight enjoy Browse for Career Nook articles with information to help you figure out where you want to go next and how to get there= Career change growth (plus self-assessment tools)

5 Steps to Creating a Nearly Perfect Resume

5 Steps to Creating a Nearly Perfect Resume5 Steps to Creating a Nearly Perfect ResumeYou can drive yourself crazy working on your resume to get it just right. But when do you know that its ready to be posted online or sent with a job application? Almost everyone has an opinion on the best format and what to include in a resume. In the end, there are five basic areas to pay attention to that will allow you to hit on the most critical aspects of a resume, and get it as close to perfect as possible. 1. Simplify the format and content. ?Lose the fancy fonts. Your resume needs to be easily readable or it will not be read. Choose a font?, such as Arial, Calibri or Helvetica. The font size in the body of the resume should be 11-point or larger. Otherwise, hiring managers will struggle to read it. Type your name in bold at the top in 14-point or larger font. Dont forget your contact information. Ideally, you should use 1-inch margins all around to retain some white space. Dont go under 0 .5 inches or it will look too crammed, and some recruiters may decide not to read it. Headings, such as Work Experience and Education, should stand out. The headings should be larger font than the text in the body of the resume, preferably 14-point. Bold and capitalize the names of companies, and bold or italicize your job titles to set them off. Pay very close attention to grammar and spelling. Remove all Track Changes markings. Check the Review panel in Microsoft Word to make sure that they are not just hidden from view and cant show up on someone elses computer when they open it. Edit, edit, edit. 2. Include a career profile. Your career summary at the top should always be tailored to the posting youre applying for. It should give the employer a brief dose of information that focuses on what you can bring to the role and company. You can decide whether you want to include core competencies upfront. These are key technical and professional skills you possess that specifically m atch what the company wants. They can be useful to put here because many recruiters and hiring managers wont read beyond this section if they dont see what theyre looking for at the top. 3. Build your Work Experience and Education sections. If you are currently working, Education should go below Experience. The only exception would be if you are changing careers and do not have work experience in the new field. In that case, your Education can be above Work Experience if its directly related to the field you want to enter. Use reverse chronological order for work experience. Include your company names, very brief descriptions if theyre not well known, locations, dates and your titles. Include specific examples of your work and the results and impact of what you did. Dont simply list job duties or copy your job description verbatim. Use active verbs to begin each bullet for consistency. Things you did in the past should be in the past tense, and things you do now should be in the p resent tense. Group bullets according to tense, so it does not look like a mistake. Use numerals for numbers to help your work stand out more. 4. Include other information in separate sections. Have a separate section for any honors or awards received from work or school. If you graduated more than 10 years ago, only note significant scholarships or honors. Include the name of the award, institution awarding it and year received. List any noteworthy presentations youve given or publications youve contributed to or authored. Include hyperlinks if possible. 5. Note additional skills. List technical skills that are unique or relevant to the job you are applying to. If you know foreign languages, belong to organizations or have done any significant or relevant volunteer work, include that here. There are many different types of formats and styles, and there is no one right or wrong way to build your resume. However, some of the basics dont change. Highlighting your relevant experience right off the bat and demonstrating specific examples of your work and its results are good rules of thumb, no matter what type you use. Equally as important are proper grammar, spelling and consistent font and formatting. Take the time to get these elements right because first impressions on paper are more powerful than you might imagine.