Understanding Elm’s self-funded health insurance; work anniversaries and more

Self-Funded Health Insurance

What does it mean?

Only 57% of respondents in a recent survey knew that Elm is self-funded for health insurance.

Being self-funded means we’re able to tailor our healthcare plan to meet our employees’ needs. This gives us better financial control, data transparency and flexibility in our plan design. Instead of paying high-fixed premiums to insurance providers for services we may never use—and facing big increases every renewal time—Elm is able to provide a more tailored and data-informed plan to our employees.

This is how we’re able to offer you comprehensive healthcare coverage at an affordable rate. It’s also why we encourage you to make your preventive healthcare appointments; visit your primary care instead of an urgent clinic or ER, when appropriate; and shop the price of big-money procedures such as MRIs and CAT scans.

Saving money by accessing the same technology at a lower cost or having blood work done to determine you’re pre-diabetic and then treating with diet before needing costly prescriptions and treatments helps save money and helps to keep our rates down.

For more tips on choosing the correct level of care, click HERE.

Collecting for the Soldiers Home

This month the EGB donation box is going to the Holyoke Soldiers Home. If you feel called upon to give, please visit the wishlist HERE. We will be collecting throughout the month of May & bringing donations over by the first week of June. Thank you, in advance, for your generosity!

Highwire Recognizes Elm as one of its Safest Contractors & Vendors

Burlington, MA— Highwire, the Contractor Success platform for builders and owners of capital projects, has announced the recipients of its prestigious safety awards. Elm Electrical, Inc has received the Gold Safety Award. This award is presented to companies who score between 85-94 on the Safety Assessment administered by Highwire.

“Management systems are critical to any company’s ability to deliver successful outcomes and, most importantly, to keep their employees safe. Elm Electrical, Inc has done a remarkable job implementing a strong safety management system resulting in exceptional safety performance and results,” says David Tibbetts, CSP, Highwire’s Chief Safety Officer.

Highwire’s Safety Assessment reviews a company’s historic and current safety performance. The program provides a thorough, objective, and consistent evaluation of company performance so clients and contractors can identify, monitor, and mitigate risks more effectively. The results provide a strong indicator of how a contractor values safety and serve as a reliable predictor of future performance.

Work anniversaries

Congratulations to the following Elm employees who celebrated a work anniversary in April:

Please help us give a warm welcome to new Elm hire, Kiana Patterson. Kiana will be working under Chris Jarrett with sales-preventative maintenance.

Project Manager Opening

We’re hiring for a Project Manager in our Construction division. Are you interested in project management?

Our PMs supervise the field construction of projects and complete work on schedule, within budget and to the quality of workmanship specified. They manage the complete process of electrical construction including: budget evaluation, RFIs, RFQs, project creation, change orders, monthly invoice prep, submittals, project close-out, customer relations and onsite management.

PMs oversee and ensure overall quality, performance, profitability, scheduling and safety of projects. They prepare drawings, schedules and designs; are responsible for material planning and ordering; and manage outside vendors and subcontractors.

To learn more about the responsibilities or and qualifications for this position, please click HERE.

The 5 A’s of Stress Relief

Everyone encounters some level of stress regularly. Practicing healthy strategies to manage and minimize the effects of stress can help you feel more in control and less overwhelmed.

Utilize the “5 A’s”:

1. Avoid: Some types of stress are unavoidable. Stress caused by delaying or carelessness is avoidable. Address an issue or a task as soon as it’s raised. Prioritizing important tasks avoids unnecessary stress.
   
2. Alter: Stress may be caused by situations that you usually address as your daily routine. Example: you work on various tasks in a workday, but an unexpected problem such as needed materials not being delivered to a job site can spike your stress levels. Instead of stressing out, seek variables to alter the situation—can another task be worked on instead, does a nearby supply house have the materials?
   
3. Adapt: Recognize things happen, plans change, emergencies occur. Take a breath, keep calm, & deal with it. If a stressor can’t be avoided or changed, adjust as best as you can & continue regardless of the circumstances.
   
4. Accept: Be ready to accept that you may experience stress from any source or situation. Instead of opposing or being affected by an unchangeable situation, accept it & take steps to overcome it.
   
5. Active: A brain, like a muscle, needs to be exercised to function optimally. Being active enhances your memory, mood, & sleep & reduces tension & worry. Thirty minutes of aerobic exercise increases blood flow to the brain.

For more stress-relieving tips, log into your free Perspectives account.