Beyond the Paycheck: A Benefit Employees Can Take With Them

September starts with Labor Day, so it seems like a fitting time to talk about the people behind our businesses.

Here in Plymouth and across the South Shore, I talk with business owners all the time who are trying to do two things, take care of their employees and run a successful business. And that’s not always easy.

Pay matters, of course. But when you’re trying to attract and keep good people, there’s more to the conversation than the paycheck. The benefits you offer can make a difference too.

Most business owners immediately think about health insurance and retirement plans. But there’s another benefit I think more employers should know about: giving employees access to permanent life insurance through the workplace.

A Benefit You Can Offer Without Paying the Premium

Employee’s Whole Life, or EWL, gives eligible employees the option to purchase permanent whole life insurance through work.

The key word there is option.

Employees aren’t required to participate. Those who want the coverage purchase it themselves, with premiums conveniently deducted through payroll. The business makes the benefit available, the employee decides whether it makes sense for them. 

For a business owner looking for another meaningful way to support employees, that’s worth knowing about.

And They Can Take It With Them

This is one of my favorite things about it.

The policy belongs to the employee, not the employer.

If someone changes jobs or eventually retires, they can take the coverage with them as long as the required premiums continue to be paid. In a world where people may work for several different companies throughout their careers, that’s an important distinction.

Protection Made More Accessible

Life insurance is designed to help protect the people you care about if something happens to you. But whole life insurance can also provide benefits while you’re living.

Over time, the policy builds guaranteed cash value that can be accessed if an unexpected expense or other financial need comes up. Using that cash value will reduce the amount available from the policy and the benefit ultimately paid to beneficiaries. 

Eligible employees may also be able to purchase coverage for certain family members.

Another important feature is Guaranteed Issue. For employees who qualify, Guaranteed Issue coverage may be available during the initial enrollment period without a physical exam or medical questions. That can make getting permanent life insurance simpler and more accessible for employees who may not have considered – or pursued – individual coverage on their own.

It’s Really About Taking Care of Your People

Not every employee wants or needs the same benefits. That’s the point.

As an employer, you don’t have to make every financial decision for your employees, but you can give them access to options they may not have known were available.

For one employee, that might mean helping protect a young family. For another, it might mean having permanent coverage they can keep throughout their career and into retirement.

Here in Plymouth, we’re fortunate to have so many locally owned businesses built by people who genuinely care about the people working beside them.

So maybe the question isn’t simply, “What benefits do we offer?”

Maybe it’s:

“What else can I make available to the people who help make my business successful?”

Sometimes taking care of your business starts with taking care of the people behind it.