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Buyers Study from Unum offers benefits stats and strategies

^{Published on 2011-06-16 11:10:51 - Market Wire}
 

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn.--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--Using employee benefits industry and Unum (NYSE:UNM) data, a new study examines the effects of health care reform, tight budgets and shifting demographics on the employee benefits landscape.

"This guide is a great tool for helping our partners understand the factors affecting the broader benefits market and how those changes play out for employers and employees every day"

[ Buyers Study 2011: Benefits strategies for a new era ] offers information on benefits trends ranging from the shift in how employers and employees share the cost of benefits to the latest buying patterns by industry, age, gender and company size.

Among the trends examined in the study:

• Nearly 80 percent of employers expect to offer some form of consumer-driven health plan by 2012
• Almost 90 percent of businesses with 1,000 or more employees offer benefits coverage with both employer-paid and employee-paid funding
• While life insurance is most commonly paid for by a combination of employer and employee contributions, employee-paid offerings continue to increase
• Voluntary benefits sales are especially strong in the 30 to 49 age group
• Women consistently purchase more voluntary coverage than men

aThis guide is a great tool for helping our partners understand the factors affecting the broader benefits market and how those changes play out for employers and employees every day,a said Geoff Widlak, a senior market manager for Unum.

The study examines how the role of voluntary benefits will evolve as health care reform unfolds, acting as a complement to consumer-driven health plans and reducing workersa™ financial exposure in case of accident or illness.

Each section features abest betsa™ that outline specific steps employers and their benefits partners can take to get the best overall experience and value from their benefits plans.

Other topics addressed in the study include the ways employers have, and will, change their benefits offerings to adapt to economic pressures and health care reform. Nearly 50 percent increased employee contributions, while about one-third increased deductibles.

The study also notes growing demand for outsourcing the administration of family and medical leave as provided by the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).

More than one-quarter of employers with 5,000 or more employees now outsource administration of FMLA-related leave. And in 2009, 63 percent of employers surveyed had integrated short term disability and FMLA administration.

The Buyers Study also includes data on:

• The leading drivers of employee satisfaction, including job security and benefits
• The direct effect employee engagement has on the bottom line
• How changing workforce demographics are increasing the need for benefits choice
• What steps employers can take to build a solid benefits plan in a complex environment

See [ www.unum.com/buyerstudy ] to learn more about the study or download a copy.

About Unum

Unum ([ www.unum.com ]) is one of the leading providers of employee benefits products and services in the United States and the United Kingdom. Through its subsidiaries, Unum Group paid approximately $6 billion in total benefits to customers in 2010.