Partnership for Workplace Mental Health: A program of the American Psychiatric Foundation

H-E-B

Date of Entry:

7/14/2009 3:15:11 PM

Major Locations:

US- South
San Antonio, TX (HQ)

Industry:

Retail Trade

Employer Description:

H-E-B was founded in Kerrville, Texas in 1905 with a single grocery store. For more than 100 years, H-E-B has been an innovative retailer known for low prices, fresh food, quality products and convenient services. The company has grown to more than 300 stores in Texas and Northern Mexico with more than 70,000 employees. It conducts a wide range of efforts geared toward helping the community and the environment. H-E-B is one of the largest food chains in the United States, with annual sales more than $15 billion, and is the largest privately held company in Texas.

Total Number of Employees:

70,000

Contact:

Tammy Schoenert, Manager, Benefits HR Strategy & Design - 210-938-8765 schoenert.tammy@heb.com

Problem Statement:

This company, family owned over multiple generations, operates with the same set of beliefs and values passed down by its founder – high productivity, customer satisfaction, and support/training for employees (known as “partners” internally). Benefits, programs, and work policies are designed around the adage “Anything that’s right for the partners is the right thing to do.” Provides strong emphasis on leadership development, employee empowerment, and internal job promotion to build a healthy culture. Provides active outreach and support to those who struggling through EAP and disability management.

ROI:

Survey of partners reflects happiness with work culture and satisfaction with benefits. Health care costs and turnover are lower than industry average. Disability incidence and duration has decreased.

Examples of Mental Health Innovation:

Disability/Case Management -

Encourages appropriate treatment and prompt return to work.
Customize questions on their health risk appraisal (HRA) to identify risks of a mental or substance abuse disorder.
Detailed Description

Health Plans -

Total health care costs compare favorably to the companies against whom they benchmark.
Detailed Description

Wellness -

Management built culture on strong benefits. Examples include leadership development and integration of EAP and disability management.
Detailed Description.

	Disability/Case Management - Disability management was recently changed to encourage appropriate treatment and prompt return to work. ComPsych is HEB’s vendor for EAP and behavioral health treatment. Short-term disability is self-insured with administration through Hewitt LCG. Cigna manages long-term disability. EAP now initiates active outreach for all disability claims. Medical claims are paid only if care is accessed through ComPsych for mental illness related disability. If the partner does not use the ComPsych network for the appropriate level of care, the disability plan pays claims only for the first two weeks. To get continued benefits on the STD side, the partner must get in-network care. The company also worked with ComPsych to customize questions on their health risk appraisal (HRA) to identify risks of a mental or substance abuse disorder and a system to initiate follow-up. Active outreach (i.e., a phone call from EAP) goes to those at high risk. Passive outreach (printed information) goes to those at moderate risk.
	Health Plans - A move to full parity of mental health benefits in 2008 was a good fit with the H-E-B corporate culture. “It was the right thing to do,” says benefits manager Tammy Schoenert. Their total health care costs compare favorably to the companies against whom they benchmark (using the Mercer Higgins report and impact benchmarking through the National Business Group on Health). Their 4.7% increase last year, for example, was far below the typical trend. In STD/LTD benchmarking, they have consistently been lower over the last 4 years – lower STD incidence (duration has also decreased since beginning EAP outreach) and lower LTD (1 year or more) incidence and duration.
	Wellness - H-E-B was founded in Kerrville, Texas in 1905 with a single grocery store. For more than 100 years, H-E-B has been an innovative retailer known for low prices, fresh food, quality products and convenient services. The company has grown to more than 300 stores in Texas and Northern Mexico with more than 70,000 employees. It conducts a wide range of efforts geared toward helping the community and the environment. H-E-B is one of the largest food chains in the United States, with annual sales more than $15 billion, and is the largest privately held company in Texas. The company attributes their positive work culture to the long-standing family ownership and the current leadership of CEO/Chairman Charles Butt. Butt is highly visible in all of their grocery stores displaying the “can-do attitude” and principles of his mother and grandmother. He interacts regularly with partners to hear their concerns first hand. In “walk-throughs” of his stores, he asks not just how they are doing on the bottom line, but how THEY are doing, personally. Employees who work for H-E-B are considered “partners” and this is the term consistently used for employees. Human resources regularly conducts a “conjoint analysis” to assess partners’ perception of the company and work conditions. Results suggest partners are happy with the work culture and satisfied with the benefits they receive. This retail company has a culture of high productivity demands, which requires high physical and emotional health. H-E-B has offered a 2½-day leadership development course called “The Power of Full Engagement” for store directors and unit directors. The program, provided by the firm, Corporate Athlete, emphasizes overall fitness, health, energy, and engagement.

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