The HR Specialist: Open enrollment countdown: Employers take a variety of approaches to health benefits education
As open enrollment for 2024 benefits approaches, employers are ramping up efforts to educate employees about key benefits, including health insurance. According to a new study by Optavise, a provider of benefits training, employers use a variety of tools to ensure employees understand and make smart choices about their health coverage options.
The ongoing shuffle between in-person and remote work has forced employers to explore different ways of providing benefits training. According to Optavise’s latest study, here’s how they are approaching that challenge:
- 63% of employers offer online benefits resources, up from 53% in 2022 and 41% in 2021.
- 49% offer printed benefits training materials.
- 44% send materials via emails, up six percentage points from last year.
- 30% host presentations or group sessions with HR, down from 39% in 2021.
- 26% offer employees the chance to meet one-on-one with an HR representative.
- 25% hold informational webinars on benefits options.
- Just 7% send out text messages.
- 4% of employers surveyed admitted they make no effort to educate employees about their health benefits.
Employee satisfaction with health benefits education varies. For example, over 80% of employees said they find one-on-one conversations very or extremely helpful, even though only a quarter of employers offer that option. Half of employees said emailed materials are very or extremely helpful, a notable drop from 59% in 2022.
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