Financial wellness is a complex topic. It can be hard for employees to understand what steps they should take to reach financial fitness.
They may know they need life insurance. Maybe they're thinking about retirement planning. But do they know what it takes to be retirement ready? Have they even thought about what would happen to their finances and retirement savings if a disability kept them from working?
will become disabled before reaching retirement age.
Source: The Facts about Social Security's Disability Program, Social Security Administration, January 2017
have no retirement assets.
Source: The Retirement Savings Deficit in America, BenefitsPRO, June 2017
Employees can run into financial trouble at any point in their lives. Those who haven't planned for a life-changing event could see their savings and retirement wiped out. Others may have to wait longer to retire because they didn't plan well enough. And these scenarios have an impact on you.
said they couldn’t cover a $400 emergency expense without selling something or borrowing money.
Source: Report on the Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households in 2016, U.S. Federal Reserve, May 2017
think they have enough money saved for retirement.
Source: Ten scary retirement statistics: 2017, BenefitsPRO, August 2017
Employees should make a budget and save for retirement. They also need insurance to replace lost income if they can't work, if they die or if they lose a loved one.
How can you help your employees take these steps?
who struggled to pay medical bills said the bills resulted from a short-term medical cost, like a hospital stay or an emergency room visit.
Source: The Burden of Medical Debt, Kaiser Family Foundation, 2016
would feel a financial impact within 6 months of a primary wage earner’s death.
Source: 2015 Insurance Barometer Study Finds Americans Continue to Overestimate Cost of Life Insurance, LIMRA, April 2015
Product Serves Vital Need in High Deductible Health Plans
Accidents and critical illnesses can bring expenses that collide with your employees' finances. In this Rough Notes article, Danielle Wooden-Lehman, voluntary product manager at The Standard, shares her thoughts on the value of offering Accident insurance with health plans.
You can give employees another way to shield their family finances with a voluntary Life plan.
Although you may offer strong LTD and Life coverage, your highly compensated team members might need more protection.
Do your employees understand why they need disability insurance? Share this video to show the value of the benefit you're offering them.
Six Tips to Increase Retirement Readiness
What gets in the way of saving for retirement? Sometimes it's your employees' own behavior toward money. Ken Waineo, The Standard's senior director of business development and operations for retirement plans, tackles the issue in ThinkAdvisor.
How to Boost Use of Retirement Plan Auto Escalation
Ken also addresses using auto-escalation to help employees save more for retirement.
Want to support your employees in planning for retirement? We can deliver communication tools and training to help them become retirement ready.
Our Mainspring Managed service provides employees with a personalized savings and investment plan based on risk tolerance, savings goals and other individual factors.
The Standard is a marketing name for Standard Insurance Company (Portland, Oregon), licensed in all states except New York, and The Standard Life Insurance Company of New York (White Plains, New York), licensed only in New York. Products and availability vary by state and are solely the responsibility of the applicable insurance company.