LifeWorks and Cover-More announce agreement for acquisition of employee assistance provider, Benestar

MELBOURNE, Australia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--LifeWorks, a market-leading provider of comprehensive mental health, digital and in-person total wellbeing solutions, today announced an agreement with Cover-More Group to acquire Benestar, a leading employee assistance program (EAP) and workplace wellbeing provider in Australia and New Zealand. Benestar is wholly owned by Cover-More, a company of Zurich Insurance Group.

The acquisition is subject to review by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).

In addition to the agreement to acquire Benestar, LifeWorks will have the opportunity to provide certain EAP services for Zurich’s global clients on a non-exclusive basis.

The transaction would allow Benestar’s customers to enhance the organisational resiliency of their businesses through:

• Access to LifeWorks innovative suite of services that provide evidence-based digital mental health support, and in-person counselling and organisational consulting, to help businesses support the wellbeing of their people; and
• The continued investment from LifeWorks in products, systems, and their growing body of knowledge through wellbeing clinical research and analytics.

Comments from senior vice president and managing director, Asia-Pacific, LifeWorks, Jamie MacLennan

“Benestar and LifeWorks are a natural fit based on our holistic and proactive approaches to workplace wellbeing and because of our shared commitment to our clients. With more than 45 years in the Australian market, LifeWorks offers our clients the most comprehensive portfolio of personalised mental health services, making a substantially positive impact in the lives of people, their families and communities, and the organisations they work for.”

Comments from chief executive officer, Cover-More Group, Cara Morton

“This is a strong strategic fit for Benestar and will have very positive flow-on effects for Benestar’s customers and employees. Cover-More Group is primarily focused on global travel insurance, medical assistance and travel risk management so we are very confident that the acquisition of Benestar by LifeWorks means Benestar will make an even greater contribution to the wellbeing of employees and workplaces in Australia and New Zealand businesses.”

About LifeWorks

LifeWorks is a world leader in providing digital and in-person solutions that support the total wellbeing of individuals – mental, physical, financial and social. As the trusted leader in mental health and wellbeing, LifeWorks delivers a personalized continuum of care that helps our clients improve the lives of their people and by doing so, improve their business. Guided by our purpose to improve lives and improve business, we help our clients improve the wellbeing of their people, we help them improve workforce engagement and productivity, thereby improving the performance of our clients’ organizations. LifeWorks is a publicly traded company on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: LWRK). The Company has approximately 7,000 employees, 25,000 clients, and serves 36 million individuals and their families around in more than 160 countries.

About Cover-More

Cover-More Group is a leading global provider of travel insurance, medical assistance and travel risk management to leisure and business travellers. Headquartered in Sydney Australia, Cover-More has operations in 16 countries including the UK, USA, Canada, Ireland, Argentina, Brazil, New Zealand and Australia. Part of Zurich Insurance Group, Cover-More aims to provide unique, personalised value and service to customers before, during and after they travel. Cover-More partners with well-known brands globally including travel agencies, airlines, banks and other financial institutions and major sporting clubs.

About Benestar

Benestar is the leading workplace wellbeing and EAP provider in Australia and New Zealand with approximately 250 employees and nearly 1,000 associates working from 41 branch locations. Benestar serves more than 2.2 million lives across Australia and New Zealand for more than 2,000 customers. Benestar provides a wide range of workplace wellbeing services including employee assistance programs, critical incident response, organisational performance, and individual wellbeing and workforce wellness.

ID-AUS, ID-CORP, ID-MHv