BACK
in December, CAA Club Group intro-
duced a new benefit to employees —
free access to virtual health care through its
employee assistance program (EAP). Workers
can now reach doctors 24-7 by text, email, apps
or video through a laptop, smartphone or tablet
for advice, diagnoses and prescriptions.
It's meant to be another tool for employees
to use in their wellness journey by reducing the
stress and worry of scheduling a doctor's visit.
And the response was impressive — almost half
(45 per cent) of the company's 2,000 employees
registered for the service within the first month,
and 200 used it in the first two months, says
Mara Notarfonzo, associate VP of compensation
and benefits at CAA Club Group in Toronto.
"I'm welcoming the high usage rates because
that just means that they're getting the care that
they need quickly. So, instead of taking three days
off to recover, they may only take one day off."
CAA's new offering lines up with a recent
survey by Mercer that found that more than half
(54 per cent) of Canadian employers say they
are likely to invest in digital health in the next
five years (with 17 per cent very likely and 37 per
cent somewhat likely).
"It's still early days, but it's growing really fast
because the unemployment rate is quite low
WWW.HRREPORTER.COM ISSUE 33.03
THE NATIONAL JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Virtual care
grows in popularity
HR Leaders Talk
We talked to four HR leaders to get
their take on performance management
/19
Focusing on CSR
For employees, greenwashing is out,
authenticity is in, finds study
/8
Pay equity in spotlight
New rules expected for 2020
mean employers should prepare now
/26
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE…
EMPLOYEE EXPERIENCE
For recruitment, employee experience
is number one, but how it's measured,
and how it can be improved, are still a
challenge /10
MANAGING DIGITAL CREDENTIALS
As micro-credentials rise in popularity,
several companies have partnered
together to establish a blockchain
management system to ease the
verification process /12
JUST CAUSE FOR DISMISSAL
Cashier's lack of remorse, disregard
for security procedures and failure
to adapt to changing requirements
considered by adjudicator /29
> pg. 2
Virtual care or digital health is gaining popularity both
with employers and employees. And while there may
be concerns around quality and continuity of care, the
potential boost when it comes to recruitment, retention
and wellness is hard to ignore, finds Sarah Dobson
