Prospective Customers
Unions
Why AWP is the Best EAP Choice for Unions
Best Practice
In a few words, history, trust and integrity. AWP has been serving union members and their families for over 30 years. AWP helped set the national standard for "best practice" in the EAP field and has been a strong advocate for client confidentiality, the cornerstone of a trustworthy program. Our average utilization rate is over 8%. This means more dollars invested in the EAP go to program promotion, customer service and client/member services. Under AWP’s best practice approach, we use licensed counselors exclusively with a minimum of three or more years post-license experience. No masters- or doctoral-level counselors who have not yet earned a license are allowed to counsel your members. These high standards ensure the best-qualified EAP counselors available in the EAP industry.
AWP saves more benefit dollars because of the way we are structured and our ethical commitment to "best practices" for EAPs. This approach leaves more dollars on the bargaining table for other member benefits. AWP was designed from the ground up, freestanding and specializing in EAP services. AWP is NOT part of a larger whole that makes profits from counseling or treatment insurance claims. In 28 years we have never collected a single payment from a client or from insurance. By intent and design we cannot use the EAP to refer clients to another entity or department with whom we have financial ties because we have no such ties. AWP counselors and case managers are able to make referral decisions based solely on the best interest of the client. This approach speeds recovery, saves insurance dollars, reduces out-of-pocket expense for participants, and increases employee retention and productivity.
Confidentiality
AWP complies with all state and federal confidentiality laws with regard to alcohol and drug abuse and mental health records. Since confidentiality is paramount to the implementation of a successful EAP program, AWP has established and maintains a confidential record keeping system consistent with these federal and state laws. AWP consistently strives to ensure that confidentiality is upheld in all cases and has maintained a spotless record during 28 years of service.
Account Management
Our account management philosophy is about ACCESS and RESPONSIBILITY. It is the management and coordination of an intricate network of EAP relationships and deliverables. By coordinating, directing, developing and ensuring the delivery of your EAP product, our account managers assure a robust offering of quality service, support, and measurable value. Employers and Union Leadership can expect the account management team to serve as the advocate of customer relations, representing the EAP, in its entirety (from I&R to claims). This results in your member experience being one of "turn-key competence", because AWP’s account management team takes full responsibility for every element of the business relationship. Our customers can expect the account management team to not only have experience and knowledge of all aspects related to EAP services and implementation, but also be proficient in understanding the workplace and factors that affect the workplace environment. As global, national, state, and local conditions, economics, and policies change, account management works to assist you craft and implement proactive responses. Our account managers specialize in account management, exclusively. We devote our full time to meet your EAP needs. Whether it’s training, consultation, coaching, special resource development, or other customer needs, we are poised and ready to help.
DOT and SAP Experience
Beginning with the Drug-free Workplace Act of 1988, Texas Senate Bill 1 the Workers Compensation Act, and the Omnibus Testing Act of 1991, AWP established the requisite knowledge-base necessary to launch the Texas Drug-Free Workplace Initiative which was funded by the Texas Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse. AWP forged strong ties with all six of the administrations of the U.S. Department of Transportation as alcohol and drug testing regulations were developed and subsequently went into effect January 1, 1995. AWP’s TxDFWP Initiative was recognized by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the U.S. Department of Labor, and the Texas Education Agency as the official statewide point of contact on drug-free workplace regulation consultation, and policy development. We assisted more than 5,000 businesses with worker-friendly policy development, consultation, and training, as they came into compliance with DOT regulations. We advised those businesses who did not have DOT-subject members to consider DOT regulations as a template for developing sound drug and alcohol free workplace programs. AWP has experience providing EAP services to organizations with safety sensitive members for over 13 years--a record that is hard to beat. Today, more than 10% of our client companies have DOT-subject members and more than 15% require one or more drug tests. We still provide policy review and consultation to all callers with drug-free workplace questions. Our counsel always follows best practice and is unwaveringly worker-friendly.
Customer Satisfaction
AWP has designed its services with customer satisfaction as an outcome. Account Management assures the best EAP customer service and satisfaction by the following:
• One stop shopping in assisting customer - ensuring that all clients’ needs are sufficiently addressed, "we’ll find you the answer".
• Prompt response to calls, EAPs and inquiries (within 24 hours if non urgent)
• Maintaining frequent communication with accounts regarding needs and satisfaction, redesigning program if necessary from a different angle.
• Handling of complaints when necessary in a forthright manner.
• Evaluation of client surveys, wellness-training seminar (evaluations) provided to clients, and follow up to ensure that they were satisfied with service offered.
AWP uses a sophisticated array of customer satisfaction tools to assure feedback and responsiveness to client agency needs. These include, but are not limited to, the following:
• Direct Feedback from Organizations - evaluation of wellness seminars, training, CISD; complaint process, or ongoing maintenance
• Organization Satisfaction Surveys – telephonic surveys that are conducted on an annual, random basis regarding service experienced from account management in previous year.
• Client Satisfaction Surveys – account management along with administration monitors the effectiveness of EAP direct services by reviewing and providing such surveys to individual users.
• Job Performance Surveys – allows for overall assessment of employee assistance program and of individual client job performance improvement.
• Internal tracking of Activities - internal quality assurance system provides regular feedback on activities.
• Invitation for feedback from Clients - we invite ongoing member and officer feedback.
We look forward to the prospect of serving you and your members with the most trusted EAP services in the country. Please give us a call if we can help by providing free advice on policies affecting workers, or design plan for installing an EAP in your workplace.