Employer Strategies

When Casey McConnell started text messaging marketing company Qittle he took the traditional route of hiring onsite employees. But he soon realized it was more advantageous to hire workers online.

New research released Thursday from Guardian Life shows that 62% of workers now enroll online for their employee benefits, compared to only 29% in 2005. In the past year alone, the use of online benefits enrollment increased by 8 percentage points, which represents a significant shift in how employees learn about, evaluate and interact with their benefits programs.

The funded status for most pension plans is anticipated to drop significantly and plan sponsors face sharply higher contributions for 2011, according to an analysis by Mercer actuaries. Mercer estimates that among the private-sector plans it studied, more than two-thirds will see required contributions jump from last year by at least 50%, and at least one quarter will likely see contributions more than double.

The younger the customer, the more they will want a guaranteed income after retirement is the first takeaway for insurers from a Prudential survey about retirement planning.

With responsibility comes opportunity . . . when we take on more responsibility for the way we live our lives and the health care choices we make, we earn opportunities for a better life. How? Choose to live a healthy lifestyle. Eat righ, check out Dr. Gundry on Google for some good advice. Get enough sleep, always easier said than done, but so worth the effort. Workout, find a cardio routine that you enjoy and do…

The culmination of years of consolidation among health insurers is restricting competition in four out of five metropolitan areas in the United States, new analysis from the American Medical Association finds.

The Hertz car rental company said last week that 26 Muslim drivers at Seattle's airport who sent termination letters in a dispute over prayer breaks could still return to work if they signed an agreement over break rules by the end of the day.

Universities struggle with diversity just as much as the corporate world, admitted Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski, president of The University of Maryland, Baltimore County, speaking Tuesday at the 2011 SHRM Diversity and Inclusion Conference in Washington, D.C. However, the two universes have a common link — education — and that link can help both worlds overcome diversity obstacles.

Budget woes are hitting public sector employers hard — and the effects are going to be felt in their employee benefits programs, reveal recent survey results from Colonial Life & Accident Insurance Company. Eighty percent of HR managers responding to the survey say their organization is looking at ways to reduce the cost of employee benefits plans. In fact, more than half (58%) report controlling costs is the benefits program’s top priority. The ability to retain…

Budget woes are hitting public sector employers hard — and the effects are going to be felt in their employee benefits programs. That's according to a new survey conducted by Colonial Life & Accident Insurance Company with members of the International Public Management Association for Human Resources last month.