Counsellors at Bermuda's Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) opened 1,021 new cases last year, EAP chairperson Martha Pitman told the organisation's AGM yesterday.

These clients were in addition to files carried over from the previous year yet still only represent a utilisation rate of 6.43 percent, she said, of the organisation's programmes which include free counselling for staff of member companies.

"With fears of a tightening economy, employees are concerned about their job security and finances," Ms Pitman said, in her chairperson's report. "It becomes more challenging to make ends meet and single parents are especially vulnerable."

With too much stress people's coping mechanisms are compromised and there is an increase in incidents of depression, relationships become strained, domestic violence increases and so can drinking and drug use.

Ms Pitman recommended that EAP member companies "use their internal resources to inform employees about EAP" to build awareness of the help in coping that is on offer.

"Employees value the EAP of Bermuda," she said. "We provide them with a quiet, confidential, safe place to discuss their problems and vent their emotions. When people are overwhelmed by their problems, they become paralysed with indecision. Through counselling they can be guided into exploring their options and developing coping skills so that they can manage their problems and find solutions."

Twenty-two percent of those who seek out counselling at EAP are dealing with marital or relationship issues, she added, while another 12 percent are there for family issues, 31 percent for psychological/emotional issues, four percent for addictions and 15 percent for work-related problems.

Most are self-referred, she added, with only 12 percent reporting they were referred by supervisors or managers for job concerns.

EAP Bermuda now has 222 member companies — with 13 having joined in the last year. Through these companies, over 17,500 employees are eligible to use their services.