EDITOR'S NOTE: As the benefits market shifts more and more away from group coverage toward voluntary, permanent life insurance offerings have begun siding that way, as well. This month we gauged a sampling of employers and employees to see how many of them offered permanent life insurance as a voluntary benefit. And our new Employer Data page focues on some of the latest data on life insurance policies in the United States. -- Denis Storey
"No. Every employee gets a $10,000 life insurance policy through the company, but otherwise, it's something the employee should deal with on his own. It seems like one of those things that should be bought from an agent -- not from the workplace." -- Gwen G., Office manager, Salt Lake City
"That sounds like a good idea, but we don't offer anything beyond traditional health and dental benefits -- even that puts a strain on our resources." -- Leo K., Senior reporter, Stenography firm, Denver
"We do not offer permanent life insurance or life insurance of any kind, but we do offer other more standard benefits." -- Dick B., Owner, Map publisher, Mount Vernon, Mo.
"I've never even heard of that before. It seems like there's always something new out there and more stuff to choose from, but we stick with the staples. Our broker has never mentioned anything like that before and, honestly, we probably wouldn't be interested in it, anyway." -- Gary Z., Human resources manager, Automobile dealership, Galveston, Texas
"That's easy to answer because we don't offer benefits like most companies. The only things we do provide are paid vacations, and employees also get discounts on services and products for their pets. All our benefits really only apply in-house." -- Sonja M., Office manager, Veterinary office, Bismarck, N.D.
