Monthly Archive for June, 2010

Benefits Education for Optimal Benefits ROI

A new study by UNUM demonstrates the power of effective benefits education.  Employers with highly rated benefits education had job satisfaction rates of 88% vs. 45% for those employers with fair or poor benefits education – a difference of 43 points!  Employers with effective benefits education programs enjoyed increased employee engagement, loyalty, morale and productivity – ultimately driving up the ROI of significant investments in the benefits themselves.

Here are some highlights from the study:

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Published by Sophie Asmar on June 23, 2010

Open Enrollment: How Will You Communicate Medical Care Cost Increases?

While this likely won’t come as a shock to many reading this post, it appears

Benefits Communications

Benefits Communications for Delicate News

that medical care costs will once again rise at near double-digit rates in 2011.  According to PriceWaterhouseCoopers’ Health Research Institute, medical care costs are expected to increase by 9% in 2011, a slight deceleration from the 9.5% rise posted in 2010.

Cost sharing has become a critical tool to help keep medical care costs affordable for both employer and employee.  2011 will be no different.  Here are the key findings of the PwC report:

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Published by Joe Larocque on June 17, 2010

Financial Wellness Eases Presenteeism – Digging Into the Numbers

Historically, presenteeism has been a word used to describe sick employees

Financial Wellness ROI

Financial Wellness ROI

who “tough it out” and come to work but operate far below normal productivity. But, there are many types of presenteeism.  There could be any number of reasons why an employee checks out and productivity suffers.  And, while presenteeism is a relatively new term, you likely have some established policies in place for helping employees stay focused at work.  For instance, over half of US companies have blocked access to Facebook, Twitter and MySpace.  Presenteeism, in its entirety, is a huge productivity issue that far exceeds that of absenteeism.

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Published by Joe Larocque on June 9, 2010

Gallup Study Highlights Financial Wellness as a Key Determinant of Overall Wellbeing

For many employers, the term “Wellness” is used to encapsulate a philosophy or an approach to employee benefits.  In other words, the goal of a benefits program is to improve the overall well-being of employees and their families.

Achieving Well-being

But what does that term wellness really mean?  What are the determinants?  How do you measure employee well-being and what sort of programs can you put in place to improve it?

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Published by Joe Larocque on June 1, 2010