Wellness Programs Call for Better Benefits Communications
Wellness programs are all the rage this year. But what’s the point of a program that employees don’t understand and, therefore, don’t use? Midwest Business Group on Health has done some research evaluating employee engagement in health benefits and wellness programs.
Engage employees with video and social media
Video and social media are the way to engage employees these days, says Brian Baker, Vice President at Aon Hewitt Consultants, in a recent interview with Benefits TV.
Baker discusses balancing the “tell” with the “show” by crafting benefits messages using video.
Aon Hewitt presents their four Cs to an effective strategy for employee benefits communications and change management-through-engagement. They recommend utilizing video and social mediums to disseminate communications that are:
Employees seek retirement advice from their employers
A majority of people have agreed they would like more guidance from their employer about how to achieve retirement goals according to the 11th Annual Transamerica Retirement Survey.
Perhaps not surprisingly, employees with a higher overall education level are more likely to be financially well in retirement. Only 63% of employees with only a high school diploma participated in a retirement plan, as opposed to 84% of those with a college degree.
40-52% of workers are delaying their retirement.
70 is the “new 65,” according to Sun Life Financial. Their Unretirement Index, along with Towers Watson’s 2010 Global Workforce Study, show that 40-52% of Americans will delay their retirement due to ill financial health.
Towers Watson found 68% of those workers will continue working in order to keep their health care coverage, while 61% cited their lacking 401(k) plans as the reason for staying. Sun Life found that only 25% are “very confident” they will be able to cover medical expenses in retirement.
Voluntary benefits are ineffective without proper education.
Conceptually, offering voluntary benefits has a lot of attractive qualities for employers. In fact, 65% of employees said their voluntary benefits made them feel more loyal at work. But is simply offering them enough?
Voluntary benefits are ineffective without proper education, according to MetLife’s 2010 research and survey. These are valuable options for employees and employers alike, yet they are shrouded with misconception.
Consider the following statistics found in the recent studies:
Better education leads to higher FSA enrollment, which saves employers money on taxes.
Good benefits communication can raise employee Flexible Spending Account enrollment by 20% or more, a recent study found. The benefits of an FSA may be obvious to the seasoned HR Director, but not all employees – or employers – know how valuable these accounts can be.
Both employee and employer enjoy significant tax savings when FSAs are used. Employees save on federal and FICA taxes, plus any additional state and local taxes on medical items paid for through their FSA.
Over half (53%) of large U.S. employers are making changes to their 2011 health plans in order to accommodate the new Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, according to a survey by the National Business Group on Health.
Providers face rising health care costs but still must supply the legally required amount of care. To do so, 63% of employers who are changing plan details have decided to raise the percentage that employees contribute to the premium, while 46% aim to raise out-of-pocket maximums. Another 61% will be offering consumer-directed health plans, or CDHPs, which are a proven method of increasing consumer flexibility while cutting costs.
Benefits communication used to engage and retain employees as economy improves
Mercer recently announced the results of their Attraction and Retention Survey, covering over 320 employers this year. These are their most valuable findings:
Better economy means higher employee turnover. As the economy and job market continue to improve, 62% of companies think employee turnover will increase as well. When employees have more options, they are less likely to be loyal unless their company puts effort into keeping them.
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:
