According to the MetLife trends study, 43 percent of people in this age demographic strongly agree that they live paycheck to paycheck. For employees that are already living paycheck to paycheck, imagine the additional struggle of going without any paycheck for 21 to 32 months.

Among younger workers who have disability insurance, the majority obtain it through their workplace, underscoring the important role in communicating the value of obtaining not only basic coverage but adequate coverage. More effectively communicating the value of disability income protection to younger workers can obviously help them understand their needs but can also help in meeting employers' employee retention and productivity objectives.  

For instance a MetLife Study of the Financial and Emotional Impact of Disability revealed that, in general, workers with disability income protection returned to work an average of three months earlier than those employees without disability income protection. This study also revealed that employees with coverage were also twice as likely to return to the same employer in the same function as those without coverage.

It may also be helpful to address some of the purchase barrier concerns directly with messages about the benefits of group rates, the convenience of payroll deduction, and ease of enrollment.

Improved Employee Loyalty

Improving participation levels for income protection benefits can also contribute towards improving employee loyalty. Workers place a much higher value on benefits such as life and disability insurance than many employers realize.

For example, nearly 60 percent of all employees surveyed indicated that they consider non-medical insurance benefits, such as life, disability, dental, and vision, very important loyalty drivers, yet only 37 percent of employers surveyed recognized this.  

In addition, employees who report that they are very satisfied with their workplace benefits are about three times as likely to indicate that they are highly satisfied with their current job. In other words, they feel more loyal toward their employer compared with employees who are very dissatisfied with their benefits program.

Benefits Communications and Tools

The MetLife trends study found that 59 percent of employees ages 21 to 30 are very concerned about sudden income loss. However, many are likely not considering that an illness or an accident may end up being the cause.

Improved benefits communications may make big inroads in this area. For instance, more than half of all employees surveyed did not find their benefits materials to be very clear and comprehensive, and only about one-third believed their benefits communications were very effective in helping educate them on options to best meet their needs. What do younger employees say would be helpful in improving the effectiveness of benefits communications?

• 41 percent would like to have more frequent communications.
• 41 percent would like information tailored to life events.
• 51 percent would like benefits information to be available on the internet.  

Workplace access to online tools may also be appreciated by employees. Only 40 percent of Gen Y employees surveyed felt very confident in their ability to make the right financial decisions for themselves and their families. Not surprisingly then, 53 percent of Gen Y workers surveyed said they were very interested in having their employer provide access to online tools to help them make decisions about their financial needs.

Online calculators, for instance, can be helpful in determining the adequacy of coverage. For instance, while some disability insurance protection is obviously better than no protection, having 60 percent to 80 percent of income protected can help ensure that essential living expenses such as housing, food, and utilities are still met despite being unable to earn a paycheck.

Since the workplace is the primary source for obtaining disability coverage for most employees, this means that employers are in a unique position to help employees make the connection between their financial concerns and the role that financial protection products can play in protecting their income. Educating employees about the benefits available to them through the workplace can go a long way toward helping them to adequately protect their income, and also affect their appreciation of their workplace benefits.

Top causes of long-term disability:

Men ages 21 to 30                               Women ages 21 to 30

Fractures                                            Pregnancy

Back Strain                                          Depression

Cancer                                                Back Strain