Last year it was 70. Now 80 is the “new 65”.
Middle class America is expecting to push out full retirement even later due to financial worries. We’re also expecting to have to save more. Yet almost half of us haven’t worked out how long we can last on what we’ve got already.
According to Wells Fargo’s new survey:
As busy as it can be, open enrollment is a good time to reflect on the effectiveness of your company’s benefits communication. While everyone seems to agree that benefits communication on the whole needs improvement, many organizations are in denial about how critical that improvement is to their own organization.
Findings from the 2011 Aflac WorkForces Report highlighted the discrepancy between how companies and their workers view benefits communications:
What’s the question? Have you read the recent headlines?
Surely there are more options for proactive organizations than just waiting for the US Congress to work together to uncover ways to reduce both the country’s budget deficit and soaring health care costs. At the recent 24th Annual Benefits Forum and Expo in Dallas, two industry experts highlighted some key ways to reverse these trends.
A recent study by Fidelity and the NBGH revealed that employer spending on wellness programs grew 43% to $154/employee in 2010. This level of growth and investment provides evidence that wellness
Start with a Financial Health Assessment
initiatives are: (1) becoming much more comprehensive and (2) demonstrating tangible business value.
In our own experiences with HR professionals, we see the expansion every day. Wellness strategies are evolving and many employers are looking to better understand how employee money issues are impacting the productivity of their organization.
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.
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.
If you’re a student of employee wellness programs, and if you’re reading this blog, I can assume that you are, you might be interested in a recent Employee Benefits News Blog that breaks down the “7 Emerging
Mega-Trends That Will Change Wellness Communication… Forever.”
Financial Wellness is a Key Component of your Wellness Strategy
Historically, presenteeism has been a word used to describe sick employees
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.
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?
Financial Wellness Update, GuideSpark’s new monthly email publication will be dedicated to providing Human Resources professionals with information, tips and best practices for implementing workplace Financial Wellness programs and establishing best-in-class Benefits Communications.
“Over the last two years, HR interest in effective approaches for helping employees understand their workplace benefits and solve their personal financial issues has grown considerably,” said John Wolff, Vice President, Business Development. “This newsletter will serve as a platform for sharing what we’ve learned in a decade of experience helping employees in these areas.”
