Beyond medical: How supplemental benefits help attract and retain talent

By Phil Bruen, Vice President, Group Life and Disability Products, MetLife

As the annual enrollment period takes place in workplaces around the United States, human resources teams and employees have benefits on their minds. During this time, it’s important for employers to educate their workforces on how the benefits they provide can help workers achieve their short- and long-term financial goals.

To do this, employees should use the information their company provides related to benefits and also seek guidance from those they trust most. Doing so, even more so than a major life event, can cause individuals to not just evaluate, but act on benefits that meet their needs.

Employers who are competing for the best talent find that providing benefits to support the financial well-being of their workforce is necessary. According to MetLife’s 16th Annual Employee Benefit Trends Study (EBTS), less than half of workers believe their employer understands their personal financial pressures.

The benefits offered to employees during their annual enrollment period go well beyond basic health insurance. Products such as dental and vision insurance, accident and critical illness coverage, and disability insurance provide additional financial support for costs beyond what medical insurance covers. Workers need to view all employee benefits as a critically important part of their health and financial wellbeing. Their benefits package is necessary to protect employees’ life goals, such as purchasing a home or sending children to college.

Why peace of mind matters

The recent MetLife study revealed that employees use their benefits to fulfill a need greater than a visit to the dentist or a more affordable way to get glasses. On the whole, today’s workforce relies on their benefits as a financial safety net—benefits give them peace of mind.

For example, 71 percent of employees say their benefits help them worry less about unexpected financial or health issues. Additionally, 65 percent say their non-medical benefits help limit their out of pocket medical expenses. Understanding these deeper advantages of benefits helps HR leaders serve employees better. It also pays off for companies as well as our research shows that benefits increase employee loyalty, engagement and even productivity.

But for many companies, the big question is how to offer more benefits without incurring outsized expenses. The answer rests in creating options for employees to customize their benefit offerings. The good news? Employees are ready to help, since 60 percent said they’d like their employer to offer a wider array of benefits that they can choose to purchase.

Getting beyond medical

When you think outside of the traditional health insurance box, some of the most important and sought after benefits fall into these three categories:

1. Disability insurance and income replacement. More than one in four adults who are currently 20-years-old can expect to be out of work for at least a year because of a disabling condition before they retire.[1] And yet less than half of Americans report they have enough savings to cover even three months of their living expenses.[2] Providing an option for short- and long-term disability insurance offers employees a simple way to keep unexpected events from turning into financial disasters.

2. Supplemental health benefits. Today’s employees want and need a solid health insurance plan. But for most individuals and families, that’s only a component of their overall healthcare. For example, 53 percent of employees consider dental insurance a “must-have,” and 37 percent say the same about vision care. Other key offerings that employers can consider include hospital indemnity, critical illness, and accident insurance, all of which supplement health plans, and provide employees with additional financial resources when they may need them most.

3. Retirement and financial wellness. Nearly three-quarters of employees report that saving for retirement is a priority—and nearly half say they’re already concerned about outliving their savings, according to the 2018 MetLife research. Traditional employer-sponsored retirement plans certainly provide the financial security and savings that employees want. But additional benefits such as lifetime income solutions, life insurance products and financial planning, and education services work to strengthen overall benefit plans and give workers additional ways to prepare for retirement.

In an increasingly competitive job market, employee benefits truly help elevate companies in the minds of their current employees—as well as the people businesses want to attract and retain. As HR executives find creative ways to build out their benefits, they also prepare their businesses and workforce for a better future.

[1] Disability Statistics, The Council for Disability Awareness, http://disabilitycanhappen.org/overview/ accessed September, 2018

[2] Chances of a Disability, Ibid, The Council for Disability Awareness, http://disabilitycanhappen.org/disability-statistic/ updated March 28, 2018

Looking for more information on supplemental benefits? Join Phil Bruen and Carol Harnett as they discuss consumer strategies this open enrollment season on the CDA’s BlogTalkRadio.