Nearly half of employees are stressed by the open enrollment process and only half are confident about the benefit decisions they made last year, according to a study by MetLife. Millennials are the most stressed and confused. When asked about the most effective benefit resources, respondents ranked one-on-consultations well above other resources. In fact, Millennials led their generational counterparts in valuing one-on-one consultations. However, only half of employers offer one-on-one consultations. Sixty percent of Millenials consult with their families and friends on benefits. MetLife says that employers need to help their employees connect the value of non-medical benefits to their day-to-day lives. Employers should also do the following:

• Make sure that employees fully understand key terms such as “deductible,” “premium,” “PPO,” and “HMO.”
• Have employees ask themselves, “Do I have a big life event coming up, such as marriage or retirement?” It’s critical to choose benefits based on present and future needs.
• Make sure that employees review their benefits and fully understand them. Only half of employees said they thoroughly reviewed their benefits choices last year.

The survey also reveals how employees feel about their benefits:

• Financial uncertainty: In contrast to decreasing unemployment numbers, American workers remain pessimistic about their financial future. Less than half feel in control of their finances. Even fewer expect their situations to improve in the next year (46% in 2015, compared to 52% in 2014). More than half are concerned about having enough money to cover out-of-pocket medical costs as well as meeting monthly living expenses and financial obligations. These worries that have increased every year since 2012.
• Job Satisfaction: More than half of employees are satisfied with their jobs and are committed to the organizations’ goals. An increasing number plan to be with their companies a year from now.
• Financial Benefits: 71% of employees consider work to be the foundation of their financial safety net. Sixty-two percent of employees want more financial security benefits. Millennials are more financially vulnerable compared to their counterparts. Gen Xrs say they are less secure than other generations.
• Appreciation of benefits: Half of employees agree strongly that their benefits help them worry less about unexpected health and financial issues. Seventy percent of employees say that having customizable benefits would increase their loyalty to their employer.
• Supplemental benefits: Employees continue to ask for a range of solutions, especially for more common benefits, such as medical, prescription, 401(k), dental, life, and vision care. Employers are keeping pace with many of their employees’ top benefit requests. However, there are large gaps in accident insurance, critical illness, and hospital indemnity. Most employers understand how non-medical benefits can provide financial protection, such as offsetting out-of-pocket medical expenses. Yet, only 47% of employees believe that supplemental health benefits can help close these gaps.
• A streamlined plan design: Plan design, claims management, and implementation rank highly as advantages of streamlining the number of carriers that employers use.
• Use of enrollment firms: Three-quarters of employers have positive attitudes towards enrollment firms. Seventy-one percent of employers say that working with an enrollment firm helped them improve benefit communications.
• Wellness plans: More than two thirds of employees are interested in physical well-being programs that reward healthy behavior. This is especially true among Millennials (75%) and female employees (72%).
• Retirement Benefits: Forty percent of employees say that having retiree benefits is a key reason to stay with their employer. Millennials feel the most strongly about this, probably due to their lack of financial confidence. About a third of employees plan to postpone retirement, an increase of 5% over 2015. Almost 6 in 10 employees plan to work or consult once retired. Of this 60%, 44% plan to work part-time.
• Older workers: With today’s workers redefining what it means to be a retiree, employers must also redefine what retiree benefits look like in order to appeal to this rich reservoir of talent. For example, 63% of employees say that dental is a must-have retiree benefit while only 42% of employers offer it. Similar gaps can be found across other critical non-medical benefits, such as vision and life insurance. More than half of employees say that their employer does not offer any employer-paid non-medical benefits. With retiree benefits being such an important loyalty factor for many employees, employers have an opportunity to keep pace in 2016 and beyond.