New resources from Unum explain critical role of financial protection
benefits
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
A new series of research-based educational materials from Unum
(NYSE:UNM) offers personal stories, compelling statistics and clear
explanations of the role employee benefits play in protecting the
financial foundations of individuals, families, businesses and the
government.
“As a leader in financial protection benefits, we see the importance
every day of helping people understand the critical role
employer-sponsored benefits play in protecting the financial stability
of hundreds of thousands of people,” said Unum Senior Vice President
Mike Simonds. “This research gives us an effective way to quantify and
explain the value of these benefits.”
A new video
presentation and research overview
feature information from a landmark study on the economic value of
financial protection benefits for working families – Economic
Analysis of Insurance Products in Workplace Benefits Programs.
“These materials can help build the financial literacy of both
individuals and businesses by clearly explaining how crucial workplace
benefits are to working Americans,” Simonds said. “A full two-thirds of
employees do not have access to disability insurance at work, and that’s
an issue that needs to be addressed.”
The Financial
security for working Americans research overview includes
powerful visual elements and statistics from the research. Group
disability insurance, for example, provides billions of dollars in
benefits each year when wage-earners are sidelined because of illness or
injury. But the value extends to the federal government, as well.
The analysis finds that disability benefits protect as many as 500,000
families a year from impoverishment, contributing to a savings for
taxpayers of up to $4.5 billion a year.
The five-minute
video presentation includes highlights from the release of this
research during the “PROTECT 2011: Workplace Benefits and Financial
Security” symposium in Washington, D.C.
The video includes speaker highlights from Unum President and CEO Tom
Watjen, U.S. Senators Kay Hagan (D-NC) and Bob Corker (R-TN), as well as
other benefits and financial industry professionals.
Personal stories and key findings from the research are incorporated
throughout the video to demonstrate the concrete value these benefits
provide to the individuals they help protect.
Sen. Hagan discusses the importance of empowering people to make
informed financial choices to protect themselves from personal
hardships, saying “financial literacy education” is the key to making
that happen.
And Sen. Bob Corker shares an emotional story about a construction
superintendent who worked for his company and became disabled at the age
of 55.
“Fortunately, I had bought for him, as an employee of my company at that
time, disability policies,” Corker said. “And it enabled me to treat him
and his family in a very dignified way.”
For more information about this research, including the full research
report, visit Unum.com/CRAreport.
About Unum
Unum (www.unum.com)
is one of the leading providers of employee benefits products and
services in the United States and the United Kingdom. Through its
subsidiaries, Unum Group paid approximately $6 billion in total benefits
to customers in 2010.
Unum
Brian Baker, 423-294-7839
Bbaker4@unum.com
Source: Unum