Title
a. Approve and authorize the Contracts and Purchasing Officer to sign an Agreement with Charles Nechtem Associates, Inc. for the provision of an Employee Assistance Program for the County of Monterey per Request for Proposal (RFP) #10309, with the initial Agreement term beginning November 1, 2012 through September 30, 2015, including the option to extend the Agreement for up to three (3) additional one (1) year periods in an amount not to exceed $810,000 for the term of the contract; and
b. Authorize the Contracts and Purchasing Officer to sign future Amendments to the Agreement where the Amendments do not significantly change the scope of work or cause an increase in the Agreement annual rates of more than ten percent (10%).
Report
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the Board of Supervisors:
a. Approve and authorize the Contracts and Purchasing Officer to sign an Agreement with Charles Nechtem Associates, Inc. for the provision of an Employee Assistance Program for the County of Monterey per Request for Proposal (RFP) #10309, with the initial Agreement term beginning November 1, 2012 through September 30, 2015, including the option to extend the Agreement for up to three (3) additional one (1) year periods in an amount not to exceed $810,000 for the term of the contract; and
b. Authorize the Contracts and Purchasing Officer to sign future Amendments to the Agreement where the Amendments do not significantly change the scope of work or cause an increase in the Agreement annual rates of more than ten percent (10%).
SUMMARY/DISCUSSION:
On behalf of Human Resources (HR), the County's Contracts and Purchasing Division released a Request for Proposal (RFP) #10309 on August 25, 2011 for an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) provider for the County organization which includes but is not limited to Balanced Living articles and videos on education, elder care, parenting and pet care; Emotional Well Being articles, health assessments and videos on abuse, addiction, anxiety disorders, attention deficit disorder, depression, coping with grief, eating disorders, stress and anger management; Financial Management resources regarding bankruptcy, budgeting, and credit management; Legal Referral Services; and employee and supervisory training on how to utilize the EAP services. Charles Nechtem Associates, Inc. was determined to be the most qualified proposer meeting the requirements as specified in the RFP. As a result, HR is recommending the approval of the Board to proceed with an Agreement for the provision of an Employee Assistance Program.
Upon approval of this action, the agreement with the current EAP provider will be ended to coincide with the beginning date of the agreement with Charles Nechtem Associates, Inc. to ensure that the provision of assistance services to employees is maintained.
The EAP program provides services to all county employees (full time, part time, permanent, temporary, seasonal, paid interns, retired annuitants currently working, etc.) and their household members. For FY 2011-12, the County had an average of 528 temporary, seasonal, paid interns, limited term employees and retired annuitants receiving pay. The adopted FY2012-2013 budget approved 4515 full time equivalent (FTE) positions, but job sharing in several departments increases the actual employee count by approximately 100 people. Adding the temporaries (528) and the permanent employees (4620) and allowing a 2% variance factor gives an estimate of 5250 employees to be covered and the approximate annual cost for the EAP service of $95,000. Fees for additional on-site services including training and critical incident responses are expected to be approximately $40,000 per year. This contract is not to exceed $810,000 for the term of the agreement.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
The Contracts/Purchasing, Risk Management and County Counsel have reviewed and concur with this action.
FINANCING:
The current contract is $1.10 per month per employee plus the cost of claims, critical incident response and training above 54 hours per year. The new contract will be at a cost of $1.50 per employee per month (claims included) with the cost of training above 54 hours and critical incidence responses charged as needed. It is anticipate that this will result in a savings to the County of approximately $16,000 per year.
The costs associated with this Agreement are included in the Benefits Internal Service Fund budget. Revenues are provided through departmental charges on a per employee per month basis. Financing for this agreement is included in the approved FY2012-13 Budget. No additional general fund contribution is necessary for this action.
Prepared by: Terri Cook, Management Analyst III, x3529
Approved by: Kim Moore, Acting Director of Human Resources, x5353
Attachments: Agreement