More employers embracing Earth-friendly enrollment systems

Earth Day is next week (April 22) and recent survey results from Guardian show that Mother Nature has reason to be very happy with employers.

Over the last five years, there’s been a 165% growth rate in the proportion of employees that use Web-based technology to enroll in their benefits, thus reducing the high volume of paper used during the benefits enrollment season.

Guardian finds that 40% of employees enrolled via computer only, versus 12% five years ago, and that 36% used paper only to enroll versus 58% five years ago.

“If the trends that we are seeing continue the workplace of the future might be paperless, at least as it pertains to employee benefits,” says Elena Wu, Guardian’s group marketing and worksite officer. “And we’re talking 10 or 20 years into the future, not a half-century from now.  In just a short period of time we’ve already seen a dramatic shift toward the use of paperless technology to manage workplace benefits.”

Keep making great strides on going paperless. Now that we seem to have a solid handle on online enrollment, next up can be eliminating those less-than-tree-friendly enrollment packets. Give it a shot – it worked for Home Depot.

Meanwhile, click here for tips for bringing Earth Day into the workplace and events on and leading up to April 22.