To add more value to employer benefits, employees expect more paid voluntary benefits at a time when more employers are placing the financial burden on employees because of the down economy, finds The Rise in the Employee-Driven Benefits Model, a recent report released by Prudential Financial Inc, Newark, N.J.

Forty-three percent of surveyed plan sponsors say they are more closely researching voluntary alternatives while 20 percent of employees have added a new voluntary benefit through their employer in the past year, the report notes.

"This notion of employees making more financial decisions at work didn't start with the recession or the recently passed health care legislation," says Andy Mako, senior vice president, product, marketing and strategic initiatives for Prudential's Group Insurance Business. "Interest has been gradually increasing over the past decade."