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Jun 1
  • Written By Scott Drochelman

    • Recovery Ready Workplace: Getting Help Your Your Substance Use Without Affecting Your Work Life

    Recovery Ready Workplace: Getting Help Your Your Substance Use Without Affecting Your Work Life

    Getting Help Your Your Substance Use Without Affecting Your Work Life

    In this episode of our Recovery Ready Workplace Series we spoke with HR Director Erica Williams who brings her 20+ years of experience on how to create a supportive environment for employees struggling with substance use. She also acknowledges that many employees might feel worried about the implications of getting help and lays out the groundwork for getting help in a manner that remains private. This is a vital episode for anyone attempting to navigate the often challenging experience of seeking help while working.

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    Episode Transcript

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    You are listening to The Courage To Change, A Recovery Podcast. We are a community of recovering people who have overcome the odds and found the courage to change. Each week we share stories of recovery from substance abuse, eating disorders, grief and loss, childhood trauma, and other life-changing experiences. Come join us no matter where you are on your recovery journey.

    Erica, thank you so much for being here.

    Erica Williams:

    Absolutely. Thanks for having me.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    I want to get into a little bit about what you do for a living and what a second chance employer is.

    Erica Williams:

    Absolutely. So I am the director of HR, so I deal with all things people-related, whether it be hiring, terminations, assistance, benefits, et cetera. And I’ve been doing it for almost 20 years. Something I absolutely love to do, I love dealing with people, but currently I am the director of HR with Staff Zone, which is a second chance company. And a second chance company, we’re giving people the opportunity to get back in the workforce and get back on their feet, whether or not they have a blemish on their background, whether or not they’ve had a substance abuse issue, a judicial issue, we’re giving that chance where other companies may not. So we’ll have a worker who is just coming out of the judicial system, just coming out of a rehabilitation center, and they’re coming to us to get back on their feet, to put food on the table, to get a roof over their head for the night, or for several nights, to support themselves and their family.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    And do you find that you work with a lot of people who struggle with substance use disorder?

    Erica Williams:

    I do. More so than I have in the past. My prior company, I dealt with this, but not as much as I do now. I have 37 branches because we just opened Monday in Plano, 37 branches nationwide. And this provides me with over 40,000 temporary employees plus my 215 permanent employees that I’m dealing with to reach out if they have issues. With my 200 and some employees, a lot of them, this is their second chance as well. So it’s not just for our temporary employees, but I’ve had several of my permanent staff reach out. Because they’re around so many people that may still be involved in substance abuse, they are more apt to go back in to that lifestyle, so they reach out and discuss options and where do I go from here? Things like that.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    What are some of the ways that you see people start to look for help in the early, early stages?

    Erica Williams:

    It varies by person, from what I’ve noticed. I do have some that from the get go will reach out and be like, “Hey, I don’t know what to do. Here’s what I’m struggling with. Can you help me?” We offer EAP, Lion Rock, just our phone numbers. Everybody’s phone number’s published. If you need anything, you call us from day one and we talk about the benefits we offer from day one. So we give them that guidance their first day of employment versus they’re having to wait to open enrollment or them having to wait till something happens to know that there are resources available.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    It’s such a sticky point for people because we have these resources. What most people don’t know is how many, A, protections, and B, resources are out there for people who struggle.

    Erica Williams:

    Absolutely.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    And yet people are afraid because they don’t want to lose their job. They don’t want the stigma that comes along with admitting you have a problem. Maybe they’re not even sure they have a problem. They don’t want to mix that with work. How do we address this issue that we’re seeing where people have resources that they’re unwilling to use because of fear of what will happen if they use them?

    Erica Williams:

    So from my experience, I try to not only tell them what resources are available, but also how they can utilize them without being penalized. You have options if you need to take a leave of absence. You have options if you need to take a day here, a day here. So not only am I explaining FMLA, but I’m explaining intermittent FMLA. You might not need all the time at once, so let’s take a day at a time, a week at a time, whatever the case may be. And I’m doing that upfront with the programs that we offer so that they’re aware of the full package and not just, “Oh, well, you have resources available, but that still doesn’t mean I’m going to have my job.” We want to see people succeed.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    So if you were speaking for the HR community, what do you think is standing in the way of people getting the help they need?

    Erica Williams:

    I have seen throughout my career in HR that they don’t trust their HR professionals because somebody in the past has not followed HIPAA or has not followed confidentiality and has disclosed information that should have been disclosed. So trust is huge, but lack of education, not only for the employees, telling them what we have to offer, but for the managers to know how to handle a situation when an employee brings it to them.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    Okay. So training for the managers is really important on how to handle it. What are the protections in place for employees who are struggling?

    Erica Williams:

    Well, an addiction will file under ADA so is it’s a disability, and a lot of employees don’t see it that way. So as long as we follow legal guidelines and they’re aware, “Hey, this is how it falls under ADA, this is how you’re protected. Your job is protected if you’re getting this assistance needed,” with the proper documentation. Somebody can’t come to an HR professional, a supervisor, and say, “Hey, I’m going to go do this,” and not provide any documentation or any paperwork or any request, because they could just be taking a vacation.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    So to be clear, so ADA is the American with Disabilities Act, and alcoholism and addiction fall under the American With Disabilities Act, meaning that addiction is protected as a disability. And so you’re saying that if someone has documentation showing they have that diagnosis, is that what you mean?

    Erica Williams:

    We can’t terminate somebody just for having an addiction. The way they’re protected is if they are seeking treatment for their addiction. So somebody comes to us and says, “Hey, I’m an alcoholic. I have alcoholism. I’ve been diagnosed by my doctor and I’m going to admit myself to this inpatient facility for six weeks,” or whatever the case may be. We let them know, “Okay, well your job is protected,” X, Y, Z, and explain the resources. I always look up the resources when I’m talking to somebody, so I will pull up ADA alcoholism or whatever type of addiction I need when I’m talking to an employee so that I don’t misspeak, because everybody’s situation is different. And we also have to look at how long have they been with the company? Have they been with the company six months? Four years? Because there also are, under FMLA guidelines, we still have to work a minimum of 12 months and a minimum of 1,250 hours to qualify for that portion of it.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    Tell us a little bit more about that FMLA. And you’re saying they have to work at least 12 months, 1200 hours in order to qualify for this protection?

    Erica Williams:

    For FMLA protection, yes. So ADA protection is a little different, but ADA covers so many more things than FMLA does, but they generally go hand in hand. For instance, pregnancy is considered a disability. So when you go out and have a child, you’re ADA compliant because you have a disability with a pregnancy, but you also could potentially qualify for the Family Medical Leave Act, which is up to 12-week protected leave in a 12-month period. So with an ADA addiction or any type of medical situation, they can opt to apply for an FMLA, which is, like I said, Family Medical Leave Act, so an FMLA leave. In order to qualify for that, you have to have been with the company a minimum of 12 months and work a minimum of 1,250 hours.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    Is there a way of taking leave for addiction without your employer knowing the details?

    Erica Williams:

    The way to do that would you be to take a personal leave, but if you don’t want your employer to know the details, your job’s not protected. Now, any of these situations, whether it be addiction, whether it be procedures that have to happen, everything falls under HIPAA. So if an employee comes to me and says, “Hey, this is a situation I have. I’m putting myself into a facility or a program, or I have to have a procedure done, I need to take a leave of absence.” Unless they say, “You can disclose my condition,” only thing I can disclose to the company, their manager, their peers, the owner, is, “John Smith has to take a leave of absence for X amount of time. Their expected return date is Y.” If they give me permission, then I can disclose their condition. So yes, there are ways for employees to take a leave without fully disclosing. If they don’t disclose anything, then it would be a personal leave. But otherwise they can utilize HIPAA to disclose to one individual without anybody else knowing.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    Right. Right.

    Erica Williams:

    If somebody does not give you permission to disclose their diagnosis, their illness, et cetera, and you disclose it and the employee finds out about it, then the company and you individually can be held liable.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    Are you, as the person that it was disclosed to in HR, allowed to share it with other people in HR?

    Erica Williams:

    No. Only if they give permission.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    So you as the one sole person in HR?

    Erica Williams:

    Yes.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    Okay. And then you can submit that documentation and get it cleared, but no one else can know about it or you and the company can be held liable?

    Erica Williams:

    Correct. Correct. And one of the things that I let my employees know is this will not be disclosed unless you give permission. The only other time that we have to really dive into it is if they’re applying for short-term disability or long-term disability, because then they have to disclose that to the insurance company. But they’re physically disclosing that on their own by completing the paperwork. You have to explain that to them. The insurance company will not give me any information, and I can’t give the insurance company any information without you consenting. So if you fill this paperwork out and send it in to our short-term disability company and they have questions without your consent, I will not be able to give them the information needed.

    Most of the time, that’s when they give us the authorization. “Okay, you can talk to them. I want to make sure I get paid while I’m gone.” And it really depends on how close they are with their supervisor. They’re like, “Okay, you can tell my general manager, but nobody else needs to know.” And then when you do that, you have to explain HIPAA to the general manager or the owner, whomever you’re disclosing this information to.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    What if the employee wants to use their benefits, EAP, or a program like Lion Rock, let’s say they want to get treatment through an employer-based program? What is their protection there?

    Erica Williams:

    Employees can absolutely utilize employee-offered, employee-based programs, and a lot of times that happens without the employer knowing, unless they disclose it to the employer because insurance companies also have to follow HIPAA and not disclose it to the company. The only way I would know is if they disclosed the treatment they were going through. I’ll tell you, I get a lot of employees that call me and say, “If I’m struggling, what are my options?” My response, “Depends on what you’re struggling with,” because we have X, Y, Z, we have the EAP, we have Lion Rock, we have your normal medical benefits that may help with inpatient treatments, outpatient treatments, et cetera. So I really dive into that without making them disclose to me what they’re going through. I encourage, but just for support. It’s not that I want to know, “Hey, what’s going on?” I want to help whomever it is get through the rough time in their life.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    What’s the difference between EAP programs and programs like Lion Rock?

    Erica Williams:

    EAP program is just a stepping stone to get the help that you need. Most EAP programs only offer a limited amount of resources. So, hey, I will give you three sessions, whether it be with a counselor, whether it be for mental health issues or substance abuse, and after that, you’re on your own, or you have to find another counselor or another therapist or another avenue. With Lion Rock, we can set them up and encourage them to make that call. And then they can stick with Lion Rock. They’re not having to switch to a new person. They’re not having to get comfortable with one thing, and then in three sessions it’s gone. So that’s the huge difference. Both of them are confidential. I don’t know if they utilize it or not, but it gives them the peace of mind that if they do stick with Lion Rock, that it’s not just three visits and you’re on your own. It’s I have a support group that I can reach out to without my supervisor knowing, without my company knowing. I can do this on my own, but it’s a resource that they’re providing me.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    I think another piece of this too is giving people language to be able to disclose in a way where they feel protected. So for example, I, being in this industry, knowing the language, if it were my employer, if I were working at a corporation, I would go to the one HR person I would pick. I disclose it with the words. Let’s just say I didn’t want to give a whole rigmarole. I’d say, “I believe I’m struggling with alcoholism or potentially struggling with alcoholism.” And I would say, “I do not give any consent for you to tell anybody else.” I would start with that. “Can you give me resources?” And I would reiterate, and I’d put it in writing. For me, this is what I would do. I would put it in writing. “I do not give consent for you to share this information with anyone.”

    I think that some of those things would create this confidence in people that they were taking charge of their situation, utilizing the resources, while protecting themselves. Because I’ve heard HR professionals talk about the trust in their supervisors and their managers and their HR. And I think, while that is so important and that we should foster that, I do think we have to move away from this conversation around you have to trust these people because I think that in many cases is lacking, and we have to give people language who don’t trust anyone ever to be able to utilize the resources. It’s great if they trust them, but if not, put it in writing, you don’t give any consent at all.

    Erica Williams:

    Yes.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    Protect yourself that way. Talking about what are the things we can do if we do not trust anyone and we still want to utilize.

    Erica Williams:

    Absolutely. That’s a great point, because one of the things I do, whether it be somebody’s coming to me with a complaint, somebody’s coming to me asking for help, first thing I say is, “Thank you for coming to me. I’m going to ask you to write this down at the end of the conversation,” whether it be via email, via pen and paper. I’m going to ask you to verbalize it and then put it in writing what you’re asking or what you’re wanting. So to that point, that’s a great opportunity that companies have is letting the employees know that you have the opportunity to really protect yourself by putting it in writing and letting us know what we can and cannot do, who we can and cannot disclose what to.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    If I didn’t want anyone to know that I was struggling with substances, but maybe I’m okay that they assume it’s depression or something, would I be able to engage the same protections and benefits if I came to my HR professional and said, “I’m struggling with diagnosed mental health disorder that includes depression and I need to get professional help. I do not give consent for you to share this with anybody.” Would I have access to the same resources and protections?

    Erica Williams:

    With FMLA and ADA comes some of the paperwork that you have to request. As long as the proper paperwork and documentation is completed, your medical professional does not have to disclose your actual diagnosis. It could be, “Being treated by a medical professional for X amount of weeks.” That shows us that you’re being treated by a medical professional. I don’t need to know the real reason why unless you want to disclose it, because they have to follow HIPAA as well. So yes, employees have that option to do that.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    So let’s say I wanted to come to you and tell you I have a disability that I need to be treated for six weeks. I can say that and give zero explanation other than what I have to write for the FMLA that goes directly to the state?

    Erica Williams:

    Generally, the employers keep it on file. So I have an FMLA file that I have for anybody who’s requested FMLA with the doctor documentation that’s been received from the doctor, but the doctor does not have to put, “Being treated for depression, being treated for addiction, being treated for a pregnancy condition,” they can just put, “Being treated for a medical issue.” And as long as we have that from a medical doctor, a true medical doctor, then they’re covered and they’re under FMLA or ADA, depending on which route we’re going in the situation.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    So feasibly, I could have a psychiatrist who talked to my primary care physician, and I could have my primary care physician write that I’m being treated for something and that I need six weeks, and this is of course a cover for going to rehab. And that is sent to FMLA. And the only thing that my work sees is that I have some sort of disability that I’m being treated for. And it’s my primary care doc, so they don’t know what kind of doc it is, and it is written in there and then I’m going to be gone for six weeks?

    Erica Williams:

    Yes.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    So employees, if they knew this, let’s say they knew what you and I just laid out, how many more employees do you think would get help?

    Erica Williams:

    I would say if 10% are getting help now, it would jump up to probably 30% easy if people knew. And it all comes back to education. So educating the managers is huge, because they need to know how to handle it. But educating the employees on their legal options when it comes to job stability and protection is huge. We talk about FMLA, it’s in our handbook, but maybe we need to add to it, and not only our company, but a lot of companies, to make it more comfortable for the employees to be able to take that step and get the help they need.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    I think a lot of the HR language is extremely complicated. And it’s funny because I work in HR and I work in addiction, so I help a lot of people with this type of stuff. My sister just had a baby and I was looking at her FMLA and she’s in San Francisco, so San Francisco has its own designation, and then there’s so many different things and we’re looking at it together, and I’m trying to help her do this. Between her postpartum brain and my clear brain, it was still a struggle. And I remember that from being pregnant and trying to fill out this information. There’s so many questions. There’s so much language that I have to deconstruct. And I also think that when you’re in a time of crisis or when you’re in a time of not being at your full capacity, and then even then, some of this stuff is really hard to get through.

    And so where people can break it down into language that’s like, “If you do this, then you do this, then you do this, then you do this, it’ll say this, it’ll say that,” and really get people this information and show them how they can be protected, we might be able to get our utilizations up. Which brings me to my next question for you, which is, if an employer is contracted with a treatment program like Lion Rock Recovery or any other, Hazelden, Betty Ford or whatever it might be, does the employer know who utilized that benefit?

    Erica Williams:

    No. So I have had employees tell me, “Hey, I reached out to Lion Rock, or I reached out to this facility that the company is partnered with, and without them telling me, I have no knowledge of it. So it protects them where if they know about the resource and they just want to seek help while still working, they have that option without the company knowing that they’re seeking treatment, but they’re still working and they’re still doing their job, but they’re getting the help they need on their time.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    Where should people go for information about their company’s benefits?

    Erica Williams:

    I’m always going to direct them to HR, because HR is going to know most about the benefits unless there’s a physical benefits department outside of HR. Smaller companies, HR is everything. But ultimately, you’re going to go to your HR professional. They’re going to know the best route to take, depending on how large or small your company is.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    Awesome. Awesome. Thank you so, so much for sharing all of this with us and both from a personal perspective and also from a professional perspective. I so appreciate it. It’s really, really important stuff and very helpful. Thank you for being here.

    Erica Williams:

    Thank you for having me. I really enjoyed our conversation and I hope that some of the things that I said are beneficial.

    Ashley Loeb Blassingame:

    Yes, absolutely. I know they will be. I know they will be. Thank you.

    This podcast is sponsored by lionrock.life. Lionrock.life is a diverse and supportive recovery community offering weekly over 70 online peer support meetings, useful recovery information, and entertaining content. Whether you’re newly sober, have many years in recovery, or you’re recovering from something other than drugs and alcohol, we have space for you. Visit www.lionrock.life today and enter promo code courage for one month of unlimited peer support meetings free. Find the joy in recovery at lionrock.life.

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