How well do employers handle the latest trends in managing absence and disability, including tackling issues related to remote and gig workers, as well as mental health issues, substance abuse and taking time off to care for elderly parents?

Overall, employers' HR decision-makers on average give their organizations a B- on how they measure up to best practices and how confident that they are that they are doing well, according to Standard Insurance Co.'s Absence and Disability Readiness Index.

However, 56 percent scored a C, D or F for their absence management practices, and 64 percent scored those lower grades for their disability practices. Fewer than half are very confident their programs are well-managed (41 percent saying this regarding their employee absence programs and 37 percent, for their employee disability programs).

The weakest areas in The Standard's index relate to actual practices: few are measuring and benchmarking their programs in absence management and disability management; less than half have formal return-to-work/stay-at-work (RTW-SAW) protocols in place; those that have RTW-SAW programs in place are not robust; and most need help keeping up with changing laws and best practices, as well as training managers.

"Despite agreement that measuring is critical, fewer than four in 10 with formal programs do so," the report's authors write. "Without measurement and benchmarking, employers don't truly know where their programs stand. That could produce their false sense of confidence."

Drilling down into specific issues, only a third of HR decision makers feel very confident accommodating behavioral health conditions. The two biggest challenges: workers hide their conditions and managers don't know how to recognize them. Moreover, 30 percent of the respondents say that prejudice against people with behavioral health conditions makes it difficult to accommodate them.

"These issues can create a vicious circle," the authors write. "Most employers don't offer behavioral health assessments. Without that type of support, workers may hide their conditions due to perceived prejudice. They may also feel less confident in reaching out for help."

Employers also face challenges accommodating employees with chronic diseases, as another Standard survey found that nearly half of employees (47 percent) experienced chronic conditions and five percent had chronic mental health conditions.

"And employees with chronic conditions expressed concerned about how their employers perceive them, with more than half feeling afraid their employer sees them as unproductive and fearing they might lose their jobs," the authors write. "Nearly half reported being too scared to bring up their conditions."

HR decision makers also say they are having trouble addressing the following trends: only 38 percent felt ready to support remote workers; just 16 percent felt ready to address part-time employees and gig workers; only 27 percent felt ready to support family and elder care issues; just 25 percent felt ready to support drug addiction.

"This indicates a potential gap between the growing focus on paid family leave and recently enacted state laws," the authors write. "Much like our findings on behavioral health, drug addiction can be difficult for managers to recognize. They may also face similar challenges understanding whether treatment is successful."

To best address these issues, The Standard recommends that employers choose a disability carrier who invests in understanding the employer's culture; provide education and training on FMLA at all levels of management, from the top down; collaborate with medical, disability and employee assistance program providers; and de-stigmatize behavioral health and make it easier to talk about.

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Employers need to step it up on absence, disability management

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