Evolutionary steps to preventing presenteeism

Unfortunately, GIP doesn’t have the best reputation, which risks sending what should be the most important benefit employers provide into terminal decline. According to Swiss Re’s recent Group Watch report, whilst the number of people covered by GIP policies is up, the number of policies “in force” has been dwindling for the past several years.

There is sometimes a belief among employers that having a GIP benefit in place will somehow encourage their staff to spend months at a time off sick, but this isn’t the case. Having policies in place isn’t enough - they need to be effectively communicated to staff, so they understand they won’t be reprimanded for taking time off when they need it.

Helping this are Employee Assistance Programmes (EAP) provided free alongside most GIP policies. They provide employees with an abundance of literature and a confidential counselling service that offers advice and support. Furthermore, EAPs integrate online health assessments and can often be accessed via a mobile app to give employees unprecedented access to information about their health.

In addition, second medical opinion (SMO) services have found that up to half of their users have refined or completely changed treatment paths after using the service. Experience-rated and Trust-based PMI schemes are also becoming increasingly popular, following the increases in Insurance Premium Tax, and certainty is vital in this context. Of course, they are not offered by every employer, hence the introduction of services such as a Treatment Sourcing Service.