Commodity Or Craft: The Choice is Ours: The Strength of Eaps Lies in Their Workplace Roots and Their Knowledge of Employers' Culture and Policies, And These are the Keys to Differentiating Them from Mental Health Services

The employee assistance (EA) field is at a juncture. Many authors have described factors contributing to the commoditization of EAPs and advocated that they remain a service focused on job performance (Sharar and Masi 2006; Burke 2008; Sharar and Hertenstein 2006; Tisone 2007). In many respects, EAPs are a victim of their own success--they have become a mainstream service to employers and are now integrated into human resources and employee benefits programs. The current dilemmas facing EAPs are complex, with multiple causes. One dilemma is that EAP purchasers are not sufficiently informed to distinguish among different EAP models, resulting in decisions based on price. Another dilemma is that EA professionals need to figure out how to better serve local employers.