Disability insurance

Commentary: Employee leave is right in the middle of policy and business management discussions. Benefit managers would be wise to get ahead of the curve.

Commentary: Many employers feel that the Americans with Disabilities Act is burdensome, but that burden is the reality, and employers have to accept their responsibility to meet it. Here are five tips to help employers with ADA compliance.

Commentary: When it comes to disabilities, employers need to do more than simply provide accommodations.

Commentary: Brokers are strategically positioned to encourage employers to commit to a more productive workforce.

Commentary: It is not necessary to have an intricate knowledge of every IDI product provision to help clients get the income protection they need.

Many employees are unaware of the causes of disability leave and about gaps in their coverage, and a DI advocate inside the firm can help educate individuals about these common misconceptions.

Applying the lens of behavioral economics to benefits choices helps employers understand why employees choose or don’t choose certain voluntary benefits.

While small employers may understand the benefits of long-term disability insurance to their workforce, many have misconceptions about its cost and may underestimate the desire employees have for this coverage.

Achieving better enrollment rates for voluntary benefits depends on high-quality, relevant data.

Commentary: Providing accommodations for workers will disabilities can help reduce employee absenteeism and presenteeism, the type of productivity loss associated with employees working through medical conditions.

Most disabilities, on average, can keep an employee out of work for roughly three months, and yet, only about a quarter of employees say they currently have disability insurance.

Commentary: This is due in large part to improvements in health care, more ways to accommodate people with disabilities and changes in the workplace itself — especially the growing acceptance of telework, says Aetna’s Liz Incze.

Pregnancy and cancer were the most-often cited uses of DI in 2014, according to Unum, which had 380,000 new disability claims last year.

One of the largest causes for lost workdays in America is back pain. It’s such an issue that plan sponsors and employers of all sizes have been looking at how best to help employees with these problems.

It’s not often a company finds itself in a market position where it has the flexibility and agility of a newcomer, along with a storied history that provides name recognition and a solid base of existing expertise. Global financial services giant AXA is in this sweet spot as it enters the U.S. employee benefit business for the first time.

Employees of all ages want disability coverage, but rising health care costs, stagnant wages and cost-shifting keep participation rates low.

Commentary: Additional benefits or coverages that adapt to an employer’s needs can create a niche offering that often can help employers think holistically about their employees’ financial future, says The Standard’s Breanna Scott.

Commentary: Proactive case management is the first step to creating a process for disability leave management that clients can count on, says The Standard’s Sandy Johnson.

Commentary: Making the “people and profits” case for integrated safety, health and wellness.

The U.S. Supreme Court backed the rights of pregnant workers, reviving a lawsuit by a former United Parcel Service Inc. driver who left her job when the company wouldn’t provide the less strenuous work recommended by her doctor.