Employee counselling (A complete guide)

In this brief article, we will be discussing employee counselling, types of employee counselling, skills needed by the employee counsellor, and more information about employee counselling.

What is employee counselling in applying psychological services in the workplace?

Employee counselling in the workplace is an important feature in the workplace.

This kind of counselling can keep employees committed and dependable in the workplace. 

Offering employee counselling can also be largely useful in fighting the chronic effects of critical incident stress and mental health issues that arise from work.

There are different kinds of this counselling where they each serve a different purpose for employees who take them. 

Different kinds of employee counselling

Face-to-face employee counselling

Face-to-face counselling is a type of employee counselling that benefits employees who want a more direct form of counselling that they might have been beneficial for a private conversation.

This is because they believe that this counselling can help them express more candid conversations that can help in reducing the occurrence of mental health problems. 

Face-to-face counselling can happen in a private office or a private area in the workplace if the employee is more comfortable with this setting.

Counsellors find this employee counselling to be beneficial since it can help them observe the body language of an employee more which can make them understand the situation better.

You can learn more about employee counselling as beneficial through its procedures used on employees by buying this book on this website.

Telephone counselling

Telephone counselling is an employee counselling that doesn’t require much organization on where the counsellor and the client will talk but the employee has the chance to talk to the counsellor anywhere he or she is.

This counselling still allows employees to talk about their mental health issues over the phone with a professional.

Telephone counselling is a comfortable choice for employees who want to stay anonymous with their counselling sessions which enable honesty.

This employee counselling can also make the employee calm since he or she can stay at home while talking to the counsellor.

Email or live chat employee counselling 

Email or live-chat counselling is another counselling that extends from telephone counselling where anonymity is promoted as well.

This means that employees who prefer this employee counselling can type to their heart’s content and help them share their inner troubles without too much pressure.

Since this employee counselling can reduce the honesty in talking about the mental health problems of the employee, live-chat or email counselling is only used as an initial session.

If the mental health issues get worst, the employee will be moved to face-to-face counselling.

 How employee counselling can benefit the overall business?

As mentioned before, employee counselling is a psychological intervention in which employees have the advantage of using when they have been disturbed in the office.

The existence of this counselling allows the employee to see that the employer cares about his or her wellbeing.

Responsibilities and skills of the employee

Employee counselling allows the employee to talk about his or her opinions about something in the workplace and something he or she is feeling that may disrupt the structure of the workplace.

This counselling can make employees be able to experience a place where they won’t be judged, unlike how the workplace has been recently treating them.

Employee counsellors take care of two clients which are the employee and the overall business.

Employee counsellors understand at what viewpoint the employee is using to talk about his or her issues and where he or she will be returning in the workplace.

Since employee counselling is usually short-term, employee counsellors may integrate several therapies to help the employee and get more advantages from this counselling.

Counsellors who engage in this counselling can be person-centred or have counselling skills in cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), gestalt therapy, transitional analysis, solution-focused therapy or one of several other areas. 

The approach in employee counselling will be based on the nature of the therapeutic relationship between the counsellor and client to meet the needs of the client immediately.

You can learn more about the responsibilities of employees that should be followed in the workplace by buying this book on this website.

Employee counselling affects employers and clients

Employee counselling can offer support for employees who are in need of this support since they are suffering from mental health issues.

This counselling is offered by the NHS but this service usually has long waiting lines that may lessen the direct intervention needed by the distressed employee. 

Some organisations have been hiring counsellors for employee counselling to get employees the immediate help they need. Some organisations get this counselling through the Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

Employee Assistance Programs are independent programs where they offer employee benefits that appeal to the welfare of employees.

The attainment of employee counselling depends on the organisation’s budget and the importance of this counselling. 

Employers shouldn’t use employee counselling as a conditional requirement since confidentiality is promoted in this counselling.

Also, employers shouldn’t limit this counselling to issues that are associated with work. 

Of course, work-related issues such as harassment and improper treatment can cause significant stress but it is the same for personal complications outside of work as well.

Employees will be expected to have detrimental experiences that have disturbed their healthy way of living which need employee counselling to intervene. 

Employees might be experiencing a sense of loss due to a lost loved one or addictions such as taking alcohol when stressed.

Although some organisations would state that the use of employee counselling for these personal issues might put the business at risk.

Employee counselling has been beneficial for people who have been having a lot of absent records that it affects business progress.

In this case, this counselling can help in maintaining the progress owed by absent employees.

Counsellors in cooperation

Working with employees, counsellors who are doing employee counselling are expected to interact with a lot of professionals in the business such as union leaders and HR professionals.

Technically, these counsellors are part of the OH professionals in the business. 

Employee counselling referrals from distressed employees or employers are reached through OH professionals.

This allows employees to get access to this counselling at any time.

Employers can learn more about inputting employee counselling in the workplace by buying this book on this website.

Skills training

Many OH and HR professionals are learning the skills needed to do employee counselling.

The skills needed are practising empathy, listening skills, able to communicate properly, patience, and practising facial expressions to control reactions that the client may mistake as judgement.

But you need to take into account that people who take introductory employee counselling courses would need immediately make them certified to be counsellors.

For instance, the mental health problem of the employee is taking suicide which is something that measly training can only do little.

Although these employee counselling skills can help staff to identify colleagues who may be suffering from hidden mental health problems and get them the help they need immediately.

There is a course for the certification of counselling skills for this counselling which is available in the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy.

Employers are even having advantages taking employee counselling courses which made them more capable of managing their employees.

After all, poor management skills can lead to mental health problems in the workplace if they escalate. 

Even when there are OH and HR professionals who may have the employee counselling skills to manage employees, employers tend to be more suitable for the job since they are knowledgeable about the business.

Success rate

Employee counselling has been considered to be effective for employees.

Studies have found that the existence and usage of this counselling made employees who were always absent to be present again. 

This result shows that employee counselling is worth the money with the positive impact it has on employees.

This counselling has also been beneficial for the financial progression in the business. 

Studies have found statistical analyses that this was true.

Employee counselling has also made the workforce more productive than before they were taken care of by the business. 

Another study has found that employee counselling has made the employees’ wellbeing better.

Other studies have also found that his counselling has promoted the following factors that promoted the growth of the business such as an opportunity for control, job demand, skill use, clarity, interpersonal contact, feeling valued, competence, work spill-over, adequacy of pay and job satisfaction. 

In this case, employee counselling has been helping the welfare of employees that leads them to happier and fulfilling lives.

The Employee Assistance Program has been accommodating this counselling to employees who are in need of support.

Employee counselling has made employees to be more motivated at work and to complete their counselling sessions to get the most of the benefits.

You can learn more about being successful in work and still keep your job by buying this book on this website.

Political and regulatory factors affected by employee counselling

The Government has found that employee counselling was beneficial to minimize the tardiness of employees.

Also, this counselling is vital to redeem the priority of the employer to display a duty of care to the employee.

Counsellors who do employment counselling should have the proper requirements to show they are certified to do this counselling.

Although some counsellors came from being OH professionals or HR professionals which make their role in the workplace almost permanent.

It is better if counsellors who do employee counselling are certified in a governing body in psychology.

For instance, they could join the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy where this governing body will make sure counsellors follow the laws surrounding this counselling. 

Also, the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy will make counsellors who do employee counselling to practice the highest ethical standards for counselling.

Also, this organisation can offer accreditation for these counsellors. 

Members who have been accredited in the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy will be able to do employee counselling in the right ways to make sure the employee gets the maximum benefits.

Also, these members will keep on learning new procedures and standards that need to be upheld in this counselling which makes sure that employees get the best psychological treatment they deserve.

Future developments

Employee counselling has and will continuously become a resource that grows businesses.

This counselling offers employees a place where they can release all their pent-up emotions without being betrayed or judged. 

As you can see, employee counselling is an invaluable resource for employers to help manage employees.

Most employers have also suggested that this counselling is better using the face-to-face method. 

Although some employees would rather have employee counselling through the phone.

While new developments have been made when email counselling was placed in the picture. 

This employee counselling can help employees who are in more remote areas.

OH professionals have been offering this counselling and NHS also did its initiative by having this counselling accessible as well. 

The Government has been helpful in promoting employee counselling in the workforce where the Fit for Work Service applies.

Even without tax benefits, this counselling might just be enough to help the organisation stay afloat in the competition.

Conclusion

In this brief article, we have discussed employee counselling, types of employee counselling, skills needed by the employee counsellor, and more information about employee counselling.

If you have any questions about employee counselling, please let us know and the team will gladly answer your queries.

FAQs: employee counselling

Citations

Health assured. The Different Types Of Employee Counselling.

Personnel Today. How workplace counselling helps employees and employers.