Millennials’ lives are changing — and so is their relationship to open enrollment

From delaying divorces to putting off medical procedures, millennial employees — the largest generation in the workforce — were more likely to put major life decisions on hold as a result of the pandemic, according to a recent MetLife survey. But as control of the pandemic improves, the generation is ready to make change — and they want benefits that will help them do it.

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According to MetLife’s report, 66% of millennials expect their employer to help them buy a new home, 76% expect help creating a will, and 27% expect financial planning programs.

“As we transition to a new phase of work and life amid the pandemic, millennials are facing new hurdles as they revisit aspects of their lives they had, until now, put on hold,” Marquis Smallwood, vice president of workforce engagement at MetLife, said in a release. “From buying homes to expanding their families — including pets — millennials are seizing this moment as a chance to course correct and put their once-paused plans into play.”

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Eighty-one percent of millennial employees are anticipating that these life changes will happen in the next 12 months. But as a demographic, they’re increasingly anxious about the state of their personal finances, according to the MetLife survey.

As a result, open enrollment season has taken on increased importance to millennials, two-thirds of whom told MetLife that the benefits election process will be more important than last year’s, and that they’re planning on electing new benefits this year. Thirty-nine percent are newly interested in life insurance, while 34% are prioritizing financial planning tools and 20% are interested in pet insurance.

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“No matter what stage they’re at in their lives, as millennials take steps to recalibrate in the coming months, they’re going to require benefits that match their evolving needs,” Smallwood said. “Heading into open enrollment, it will be important for this generation to ask themselves how their lives may evolve in the coming months, and in turn, which employer-offered benefits can support them along the way.”