Employee benefits under the gun

As double-digit increases in medical insurance continue, many employers look for ways to keep their budgets lean. Employers across the country are cutting back on employee benefits as one measure to combat a lagging economy. A few payroll companies, however, have developed unique solutions that are helping their customers and their benefits brokers become more efficient. 

Payroll service bureaus have a distinct advantage in capturing data and now are using technology to eliminate the manual errors that ultimately cost employers valuable dollars. The process of enrolling an employee into each benefit plan, typing in the correct payroll deduction, collecting the employee portion from their paycheck, and moving that money to the carrier is prone to human error. Studies show that on average a 3 to 8 percent error rate exists in the annual administration of employee benefits. These monies are in addition to premium paid to the carrier and directly impact a company’s bottom line.