With the hefty price tag organizations pay for employee benefits, effectively communicating those offerings to get the highest return on investment is critical - particularly in the current economic environment. To this end, having a vision to engage and motivate workers is one thing. Turning that vision into a successful campaign is quite another.

The group legal plan is growing. More employers are slashing budgets, which often equals cutting benefits. No more 401(k) matching, a high-deductible health plan becomes the only option, and money gets tight and employees see it and feel it.

An entrepreneur has launched a new employee benefits service promising companies access to a network of certified public accountants who will offer prepaid tax preparation and year-round tax advice to their employees.

As open enrollment season approaches, employees likely will see that they have more voluntary benefit options than in previous years, a survey by Colonial Life concludes. The insurer's poll of more than 750 HR managers and benefits administrators found that almost half (49%) expect to add voluntary benefits to their plans within the next year. Employers were asked about their employee benefits packages and benefits communication efforts.

When acquiring a spin-off - buying a subsidiary that will be standing on its own or integrated into the acquirer's other businesses - benefits are key to a deal's success and minimizing employee disruption. Successfully transitioning employee benefits in spin-offs presents unique challenges.

Although the name Dave Thomas likely is most closely associated with the smiling red-haired girl in pigtails who serves as the icon for his chain of Wendy's restaurants and the burgers and Frosties the outlets serve, the restauranteur also was a passionate advocate for adoption. Himself an adoptee at age 5, Thomas spent most of his adult life championing adoption and making inroads with employers to provide adoption benefits.

Corporate America does lend itself to a workday that includes 90-minute intervals of intense work and then periods of deep recharging. It’s certainly not the image conjured; it’s the dedicated employee who works late, comes in early and eats lunch at his/her desk.

President Obama addressed a joint session of Congress last Thursday evening to present a jobs bill containing an expansion of the payroll tax cut, tax breaks for new hires and salary raises and other tax reform measures.

New research from Aflac underscores a big opportunity for advisers to help ease employees’ confusion during open enrollment.

Facing the twin blights of constrained state budgets and eroding market value amid the still-sputtering economy, retirement programs for public employees are under siege, with numerous state and local employers either undertaking or considering massive restructuring of their benefit plans.

The second poll in a series of retirement pulse polls by Sun Life Financial suggests that discomfort over aging and hopes of remaining independent throughout the golden years prevent many Americans from planning long-term care. “Shut Your Eyes and Hope for The Best: American Attitudes Toward Long Term Care Planning,” surveys both mainstream and affluent Americans age 50 and older.

President Obama addressed a joint session of Congress last Thursday evening to present a jobs bill containing an expansion of the payroll tax cut, tax breaks for new hires and salary raises and other tax reform measures.

Well, it’s been quite an interesting renewal/marketing season already, hasn’t it? Trend factors are lower than they’ve been in years. Some carriers are out there offering premium holidays for new clients who sign up before January 1. And when’s the last time you saw a carrier offer a double-digit rate decrease right out of the chute? …

One of the first (and most popular) changes brought on by health care reform was the mandatory extension of health plan eligibility to adult children up to age 26 regardless of student status or dependence upon the employee. Most people predicted that the rate of ineligible dependents would decrease after this provision took effect. Based upon a study my firm recently completed, comparing similar populations before and after the implementation of this provision, we can…

The number of jobs waiting to be filled edged up slightly in July but hiring dipped, preventing a much-needed boost to the struggling economic recovery, government data showed on Wednesday.

Benefits and benchmarking go hand in hand, particularly for health and retirement plans. The National Compensation Survey on Health and Retirement Plan Provisions in Private Industry report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics provides benchmarking data for workplace health and retirement benefits.

Half of America’s households (about 58 million) claim to be underinsured when it comes to life insurance, according to a new study from LIMRA. The study, “Trillion Dollar Baby Growing Up,” revealed as much as $17.5 trillion in untapped sales potential for the life insurance market.

HR/benefits managers looking for new and more effective ways to interact with baby boomer employees should be inspired by a new Pew Research Center report that found social networking participation among this highly coveted group surged more than 60% in the past year.

McKinsey & Co. caused quite a stir not only around the insurance world, but all the way to Washington, when it recently revealed that 30% of employers will "definitely or probably" drop their coverage when the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act takes effect in 2014.

If you're looking to build your revenue sources and help your clients introduce or expand their health benefits, voluntary benefit discount programs might be the perfect fit.