Majority of Employees Find Benefit Counseling Valuable

February 3, 2012 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – Ninety-six percent of workers who take part in individual benefits counseling sessions say they better understand their benefits as a result. 

According to the survey by the Colonial Life & Accident Insurance Company, 47% of employees say attending benefits counseling sessions significantly improved their understanding. Ninety-eight percent of employees believe having annual one-to-one benefits counseling sessions is important, with 63% saying it’s very important.

Employers spend a lot of money providing benefits for their employees, yet research shows the vast majority of them don’t think their employees really understand their benefits packages.Colonial Life said less than 19% of employers think their employees have a very good understanding of their benefits. And nearly 5% think their employees know nothing at all about their benefits.

Results from the survey are based on an online post-enrollment poll of more than 15,000 employees conducted by Colonial Life & Accident Insurance Company since January 2010.

Tara Cantore
editors@plansponsor.com