A. Program Objectives

1. To provide confidential, professional and appropriate assistance to employees and their immediate family members within the scope of the program policy.

2. To promote education and awareness that alcoholism and chemical dependency are diseases for which there is effective treatment and rehabilitation.

3. To promote adequate treatment coverage for chemical dependency by district-approved group insurance plans as for any other disease under these plans.

4. To provide training in order to increase the supervisor's awareness in identifying changes in employee behavior and performance.

5. To provide training regarding the supervisor's role in relation to troubled employees and the utilization of the Employee Assistance Program.

6. To annually assess the programs' effectiveness for the purpose of identifying appropriate changes.

B. Case Handling Procedures

1. There are two types of referrals:

a) Voluntary, self-referral by an employee or family member or

b) Supervisor referral.

2. An employee exhibiting continuing job performance problems not readily corrected by usual administrative procedures would be appropriate for referral to the Employee Assistance Program. When such an employee is identified, the supervisor will meet with the employee and contact the employee organization representative, if applicable, to inform him/her of the conference with the employee. The supervisor will inform the employee of his/her right to determine whether the employee organization representative will be present at the conference. It will be the employee's responsibility to invite the employee organization representative to the scheduled conference. The conference will be restricted to issues of job performance. Supervisors will avoid expressing opinions or judgments regarding diagnosis or causes.

3. After the supervisor reviews job performance deficiencies with the employee, the supervisor will inform the employee of professional and confidential services available through the district's Employee Assistance Program.

4. The employee may choose to accept or reject the offer to meet with the district's Employee Assistance facilitator for confidential help and referral. If the employee rejects the offer and the job performance problems do not recur after the conference, the issue is resolved. If the employee chooses to participate in the Employee Assistance Program, then the district's Employee Assistance facilitator will arrange a referral for the employee to a district retained professional agency for assessment and treatment.

5. If the employee rejects the offer and the supervisor and the employee organization representative, if applicable, recognize that the job performance problem is continuing and the employee's performance is not satisfactory, the next step will be to offer the employee a firm choice between accepting the assistance offered by the program or be confronted with whatever action is appropriate within the framework of existing collective bargaining agreements or board policies.

6. The decision to request and/or accept assistance through the Employee Assistance Program is the personal responsibility of the employee.

7. All records resulting from an individual's involvement in the Employee Assistance Program will be confidential unless the employee provides a written Release of Information.

C. There shall be an Employee Assistance Program facilitator whose responsibilities shall be to work with the Employee Assistance Program committee and promote and implement the Employee Assistance Program.

Highline School District 401
Adopted by the Board: September 1983
Revised by the Board: 08.00, 06.04