Supplemental Benefits

Employers of all sizes now can offer an array of insurance options to employees, either as additional employer-paid benefits, as voluntary purchases by the employee, or a mix of the two. These arrangements are often referred to as a worksite insurance programs.

While an employee is free to find supplemental insurance coverage on the open market, the benefit of a worksite program are twofold: first, premiums for employee-paid insurance are deducted from the employee's payckeck, assuring that premiums are paid; and second, some supplemental insurance may be offered through a group policy, which may offer lower rates compared to individual policies a employee might purchase on the open market.

FTJ has more than 40 years of experience managing worksite programs, including program design, administration, and promotion to employees. We have relationships with lengthy roster of top-rated life and health insurance carriers, which means we can offer supplemental plans that suit the needs of any employer.

The most common employer-paid supplemental benefits are:

Term Life Insurance, the most widely offered insurance benefit after health insurance¹. When provided as a group benefit to all employees during the term of their employment, term life insurance coverage is especially cost-effective for the employer.

Employers often provide term life insurance equal to each employee's annual salary or a multiple of the salary, or a fixed death benefit for every employee. Term life pays a death benefit to the stated beneficiary when an insured dies by any cause, except death resulting from military service.

Accidental Death & Dismemberment Insurance, a form of insurance that pays a benefit when the insured dies as a result of an accident, as defined in the policy, or loses the use of one or more eyes, hands, arms, feet or legs, according to a benefit schedule defined in the group policy.

Disability Income Insurance, which pays up to two-third of an employee's salary when the employee is unable to work due to disability, as defined in the policy. Disability policies can either provide short-term coverage (typically up to two years of disability income) or long-term coverage (income until recovery or to age 65 for permanently disabled employees).

According to the Social Security Administration, a 20-year-old has a one-in-four chance of experiencing a temporary or permanent disability by the time he or she reaches retirement age.²

Dental Insurance, which helps cover the cost of the employee's dental care. Most dental plans cover all costs related to an annual dental exam and and cleaning. Employees can often pay for expanded coverage for family members.

Vision Insurance, which pays for an employee's annual vision exam and contributes toward the cost of eyeglasses or contact lenses. Coverage can be extended to an employee's family for an additional cost.

Other types of insurance and financial services offered through worksite programs include:

Critical Illness Insurance, a policy that pays benefits when the insured receives medical care for any  illness that is defined in the policy.

Long-Term Care Insurance, an individual policy that helps pay for care in various settings, including in-home care, adult day care centers, assisted living facilities, and nursing homes. According to government data, a person at age 65 has an almost 70% chance of needing some type of long-term care services in their remaining years.³

Retirement Planning services. FTJ has access to hundreds of investment options from insurance and mutual fund companies. Through education and a wide range of products, your staff will have the tools they need to take full advantage of tax-sheltered retirement planning.
 

Sources:

^{1 Robert Half International, “Best Employee Perks and Benefits: Your Guide for 2025”}

² Social Security Administration, https://www.ssa.gov/oact/NOTES/ran6/an2020-6.pdf

³ LongTermCare.gov, https://acl.gov/ltc/basic-needs/how-much-care-will-you-need