Workplace Resources for Employees and HR Professionals

Disability Guide 2020: Pandemic Highlights Need for Disability Insurance

The coronavirus pandemic upended the workplace — disrupting workers’ lives and livelihoods and making disability within the workplace an even greater reality than ever before. This report explores the need for disability protection for workers and their families, key factors employers should consider when working with disability claims and leave, and tips to make your workforce more inclusive to people with disabilities.

Download the Disability Guide

Quick Tips: Home Office Ergonomics and Physical Wellness

With at-home work at an all-time high and many people adapting to non-traditional office settings, the importance of a proper workspace setup has become more essential than ever. Ergonomics refers to designing a job to fit the individual, and implementing ergonomic solutions can make you more comfortable, reduce muscle strain, and increase productivity.

This Ergonomic Guide offers a few simple tips and pointers for adjusting your home office to be more ergonomically friendly along with some easy stretching exercises to improve flexibility and mobility.

Download the Ergonomic Guide

Unum Mental Health Reports: 2019 Strong Minds at Work and 2020 Mental Health Update

In a detailed 2019 report, Unum highlights survey data from human resources professionals; adult workers in the U.S.; workers with a diagnosed mental health issue; and insight from mental health professionals and industry-leading research organizations. The 2020 update provides new consumer sentiment and focuses on three keys to the adoption of mental health resources: awareness, education and early intervention.

Some key findings include:

• Mental illness is one of the top causes of worker disability in the U.S., and 62% of missed work days can be attributed to mental health conditions
• 46% of workers say they have or know someone with a mental health issue, and those numbers are higher among Millennials (59%) and Gen Z (64%).
• 55% of employees say their employer did not have, or they were unsure if their employer had, a specific program, initiative, or policy in place to address mental health
• 76% of employees were confident their managers were properly trained on how to identify employees who may be having a mental health issue, while just 16% of HR professionals felt the same
• Among employees with a mental health issue, 42% have come to work with suicidal feelings
• 61% of employees feel there’s a social stigma in the workplace towards colleagues with mental health issues; half of them feel that stigma has stayed the same or worsened in the previous five years

Beyond exploring extensive feedback from employees and HR professionals, these reports also offer clear recommendations for employers on how to support employees with mental health issues and how to create a stigma-free workplace culture.

Download the Strong Minds at Work Report

Download the 2020 Mental Health Update

Annual Enrollment Guide: Breaking Down Key Employee Benefits

Every year, millions of workers enroll in employee benefits through their workplace during annual enrollment. During this time, employees make crucial financial decisions for their families for the coming year and beyond.

This Enrollment Guide provides essential information about a variety of the most common employee benefits. In addition to basic benefits information, Unum also provides insights from consumer research conducted in August 2019 among 1,512 U.S. full-time workers.

This guide you can help you navigate through the often-confusing maze of options. While not every employer will offer all of these benefits, overviews of each will help inform you of what’s available and key considerations about each.

Download the Annual Enrollment Guide

Bringing Up Baby: A Guide to Workplace Parental Leave Resources

From navigating benefits to developing a leave plan and returning to work, juggling new parent duties with job responsibilities can be challenging. In March 2019, Unum conducted research among 500 new mothers and fathers who had or adopted a child in the previous five years. Some of the key findings include:

• 49% of new moms and 36% of new dads did not meet with their manager or HR department to discuss their leave benefits; 40% of those who did spent 30 minutes or less
• Some of the top struggles of new parents included leaving their child (61%), not wanting to return to work but needing the income (52%), logistics of childcare (42%) and a reduced focus or concentration at work (37%)
• Paid leave is the most desired workplace benefit, but only 30% of these new parents’ employers offer it
• 47% of new mothers said breastfeeding at work was one of their biggest challenges and only 17% of parents said their employer offers lactation rooms
• 60% of moms and 40% of dads struggled with depression or anxiety after becoming new parents

This guide contains basic tips, timing and conversation starters to engage with managers and HR representatives, spotlights key findings from research and contains links to additional resources.

Download the Bringing Up Baby Report

Adult Caregiving: Generational Considerations for America’s workforce

Caregiving responsibilities can take emotional, physical and financial tolls on the caregiver and result in lower productivity and engagement at work. This report from 2018 details findings from research fielded among caregivers of adult family members among Baby Boomers, Gen Xers and Millennials.

Some key caregiver findings, further detailed by generation in the report, include:

• Most (58%) are caring for a parent or in-law, with spouse (16%) and adult child (10%) accounting for other top responses
• In addition to their caregiving responsibilities, most caregivers (55%t) are working more than 30 hours per week
• Caregiving responsibilities result in missed work or tardiness (52%) and lower productivity on the job (22%)
• Caregivers report stress, anxiety and/or depression (61%), exhaustion (49%) and financial strain (44%)
• From their employers, caregivers most desire flexible schedules (67%), employer-paid family leave (50%) and the ability to work from home (42%)
• Caregivers long for mobile technology to help them manage their leave (85%)

Download the Adult Caregiving Report