In October, Short Term Disability (STD) claims and leave requests coming into the Unum Absence Management Center (AMC) trended sharply upward. November data confirms that this was just the beginning of an unfortunate escalation.
Unum provides STD benefits and leave-management services to employers across the country. So it’s no surprise that claims and leave requests mirror nationwide COVID-19 trends. The U.S. hit new records for daily new cases in November, and doubled the number of cases recorded the previous month.
Accordingly, total pandemic-related STD claims and leave requests for November were nearly twice what we saw in October. (A slight downward trend the week of November 22 reflects the Thanksgiving holiday.)
Pandemic-related activity as a percentage of claims and leave requests grew in parallel, increasing from 14% the last week of October to 26% by the final week of November.
COVID-19 vs. non-COVID-19 leave requests and Short Term Disability claims
“As we did last spring when the virus first began to affect our customers and their employees, we have adjusted staffing to ensure all claims and leave requests are processed quickly and accurately,” says Michelle Boucher, Unum SVP of Benefit Operations. “The AMC is fully staffed with trained and experienced representatives who stand ready to provide employees with the expert, empathetic service they need in these difficult days.”
Unum urges everyone to observe the Centers for Disease Control’s pandemic protocols to help stem the rising tide of virus cases, keep people safe and reduce the burden on our nation’s health care system. Rest assured we will be there for all our customers everywhere as we face these continuing challenges together.
About the report
The Unum Leave and Claim Trends Report offers a line of sight into leave requests and Short Term Disability claims from our extensive customer base of employers across the United States.
The report, first released in May 2020, shows volumes and the proportion of COVID-19-related claims, helping employers, consultants and brokers understand trends and benchmarks as they navigate the ever-evolving COVID-19 landscape.
View previous Leave and Claim Trend Reports
Visit HR Trends for up-to-date insights from HR leaders
Reference material
COVID-19 vs. non-COVID-19 leave requests and Short Term Disability claims [Back to graph]
| Week beginning | Non-COVID-19-related | COVID-19-related |
|---|---|---|
| March 15 | 91% | 9% |
| March 22 | 79% | 21% |
| March 29 | 67% | 33% |
| April 5 | 67% | 33% |
| April 12 | 70% | 30% |
| April 19 | 70% | 30% |
| April 26 | 73% | 27% |
| May 3 | 76% | 24% |
| May 10 | 79% | 21% |
| May 17 | 78% | 22% |
| May 24 | 84% | 16% |
| May 31 | 82% | 18% |
| June 07 | 88% | 12% |
| June 14 | 87% | 13% |
| June 21 | 86% | 14% |
| June 28 | 85% | 15% |
| July 5 | 84% | 16% |
| July 12 | 82% | 18% |
| July 19 | 82% | 18% |
| July 26 | 84% | 16% |
| August 2 | 84% | 16% |
| August 9 | 85% | 15% |
| August 16 | 85% | 15% |
| August 23 | 87% | 13% |
| August 30 | 88% | 12% |
| September 6 | 88% | 12% |
| September 13 | 89% | 11% |
| September 27 | 90% | 10% |
| October 11 | 88% | 12% |
| October 25 | 86% | 14% |
| November 8 | 80% | 20% |
| November 22 | 74% | 26% |