Canadian businesses silently lose millions of dollars each and every year when the breakdown of their staff’s personal relationships result in higher absenteeism rates, reduced productivity and contribute to higher insurance and other business costs. This is a profit drain that few companies have adequately addressed. The personal lives of staff have been largely unreachable in terms of providing workplace-based support for this critical health and quality-of-life issue. While there is little information specifying the impact of this problem on Canadian corporate profitability, the following statistical summary of studies conducted in the United States offers a reflection of the situation in Canada given the two countries’ similar social and business climates.

I) BUSINESS COSTS OF UNHEALTHY OUT-OF-OFFICE STAFF RELATIONSHIPS

Failing Relationships Cost Companies Money

1) American businesses lose $6 billion as a result of reduced productivity caused by staff marriage and relationship difficulties at home. (Forthofer, Markman, Cox, Stanley & Kessler, 1996).

2) For an average employee making $20/hr, the projected cost to your company of that employee divorcing is over $8,000.
(Visit www.prepare-enrich.com/divorceformula, where you can input data from your company to obtain an accurate cost impact estimate for when an employee divorces.)

Marital Problems Contribute to Decreased Productivity

1) Failing relationships can lead to affairs in the workplace, and up to 25% of these relationships lead to decreased productivity (Corporate Resource Council, 2002).

2) Divorce can disrupt the productivity of an individual worker for as long as three years (Lavy, 2002).

3) In the year following divorce, employees lost an average of over 168 hours of work time, equivalent to being fully absent four weeks in one calendar year (Mueller, 2005). This means that recently divorced employees are absent from work due to relationship-related reasons for over 8% of their annual time on the job.

Divorcing Employees Often Have Serious Health Concerns

1) Couples in marriages of poorer quality have lower immune functioning than people in more satisfying marriages (Waite & Gallagher, 2000). This marital stress spills over into job functioning.

2) The likelihood of domestic violence grows as relationships fail (Gallagher, 2002). Domestic violence costs Corporate America up to 7.9 million paid workdays of lost productivity annually (Corporate Alliance to End Partner Violence, 2006)

3) Statistics Canada reports that men and women who divorce are between 2 – 4 times more likely to become depressed than counterparts who remain married.

4) Unhappily married couples were almost four times more likely to have a partner abusing alcohol than in happily married couples (Whisman, Uebelacker, & Bruce, 2006). Those with alcohol problems skip or miss work 30% more than those without such problems (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2004).

Higher Healthcare Costs

The increased levels of stress, anxiety, and depression resulting from failing relationships lead to lower levels of physical health and increased risk for substance abuse problems. These health issues cost companies in higher insurance premiums and healthcare expenditures (Gallagher, 2002).

II) HOW EMPLOYERS BENEFIT BY SUPPORTING HEALTHY OUT-OF-OFFICE STAFF RELATIONSHIPS

Happily Married Couples are More Loyal and Stable Employees

1) Happily married men have reduced job turnover rates, have lower rates of absenteeism, and are generally considered more dependable and motivated (Corporate Resource Council, 2002).

2) A recent study found that when dual-income couples are happily married, they have a greater level of commitment to their employers (Curtis, 2006).

3) Companies that support families through corporate policy are seen as more desirable to work for. In fact, a recent survey of MBA graduates noted that 70% rated work-family balance as more important to them than salary (Chincilla & Torres, 2006).

4) When considering that it costs 150% of a blue-collar worker’s total benefit package to replace him or her, and 250% of managerial and sales professional benefit packages, it makes a great deal of sense to reduce turnover and invest in employee relationship health (Tangri, 2003).

Happily Married Employees are Healthier

1) Immune system functioning is improved for happily married couples (Waite & Gallagher 2000).

2) For males, being happily married is the equivalent of being 18 months younger than chronological age; for women this effect is approximately six months younger (Waite & Gallagher 2000).

3) Obviously, workers who are healthier and younger tend to have lower rates of health service utilization and fewer chronic health problems (i.e., stress and anxiety-related conditions) and thus can lead to lessened expenditure on healthcare costs for employers.

Relationship Skills Transfer From Home To The Office

A recent study of office productivity compared the most productive and least productive departments on a wide measure of relationship skills (Olson, 2006). Despite equally high levels of work stress, the group with greater relationship skills from their couple and family relationships were found to be the most productive.

Prevention Programs are a Great Investment

1) Federal and state governments spend $1 to promote healthy marriages and relationships for every $1000 spent to deal with the effects of family disintegration (Fagan & Rector, 2000).

2) Employer-sponsored programs targeted at reducing stress and increasing workplace health result in an estimated $1.40 – $4.90 in savings for every $1.00 spent (Goetzl, Juday & Ozminkowski, 1999).

3) Other studies have attributed an ROI of up to $6.85 for every dollar invested in employee wellness programs (Tangri, 2003).

III) THE PROBLEM

Employees, especially men, are reluctant to ask for help. Of 384 Fortune 500 companies that offer paternity leave to new fathers, only 9 companies have ever received a request for leave (Curtis, 2006). Individuals too often feel that requesting assistance is a sign of weakness or that they will be quickly passed over when it comes time for a promotion.

IV) INNER SYNC SYSTEMS’ PRODUCT AND SERVICE SOLUTIONS

What Employers Can Do

1) Know your company’s relational starting point via valid relationship assessment tools.
Solution - Pre and post workshop consultations with business owners

2) Offer marriage and relationship education to increase overall relational wellness.
Solution - Inner Sync Systems Inc. offers:
A) The “Divine Dance of the Sexes” Gender Knowledge System
B) The “Gender Gym” Intensive Experiential Workshop
C) Teleseminars on various topics based on the Gender Alchemy model

3) Offer relational coaching through your existing EAP structure.
Solution - Individual, couple and group coaching for employees and spouses to effectively integrate material into their lives.

4) Provide access to professional services for intervention.
Solution – We are not counselors. New workshops, support materials like CD’s, books and mini-courses are constantly in development to provide ongoing growth and support for our clients.

Please feel free to leave any comments you have about this report or contact us if you have any questions or would like more information.

Source: Marriage & Family Wellness: Corporate America’s Business?
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Published by The Marriage CoMission; Created by Life Innovations