Employee Benefit, ERISA - LFE Institute

	Employee Benefit News: National Trends Trigger More Financial Education As employees struggle to make ends meet during this tight economy, more employers are offering unbiased Money Coaching and interactive workshops as an Employee Benefit. These services not only help reduce the high cost of Presenteeism, worker slow-downs, and minimize liabilities, but Workplace Financial Literacy is one of the most employee-friendly Benefits companies can offer. Here are just a few of the current economic trends motivating more employers to sponsor these low-cost Employee Benefits:
			Conference Board - January 2010 55% of American workers are unhappy with their jobs.
			American Bankruptcy Institute - January 2010 Personal bankruptcies hit 1.4 million in 2009, 32% more than the previous year.
			FDIC - December 2009 140 banks have failed so far this year.
			US Department of the Treasury - December 2009 3.9 million foreclosures in 2009.
			December 2009 U.S. unemployment rate drops below 10%.
			McKinsey & Co - October 2009 One-third of American households have no retirement savings.
			Congressional Oversight Panel - October 2009 1 in 8 US homes are currently in foreclosure or default.
			Charles Schwab - July 2009 Two-thirds of young workers (ages 23 – 28) want more financial education.
			WorldatWork Conference - June 2009 Employers have growing concerns about potential liability exposure caused by financially stressed employees (accidents, identity theft, product/service quality, and growing worker rage).
			Federal Reserve - May 2009 Credit card delinquencies have risen to the highest level since 1991.
			Deloitte/IFEBP - May 2009 82% of employers with 401(k) plans say that most of their employees are not adequately prepared for retirement.
			PFEEF Director of Research, Dr. Aimee Prawitz - May 2009 30% to 80% of employees waste work time dealing with personal financial matters.
			Charles Schwab - April 2009 87% of senior finance executives agree that personal money management education is a primary responsibility of the employer!
			EBRI - 19th Annual Retirement Confidence Survey - April 2009 Only 13% of employees ( a record low) are very confident of having enough money to live comfortably in retirement – 50% lower than just two years ago.
			Gallop & Heathways Study – March 2009 In less than one year, more than 24 million Americans shifted from lives that were once ‘thriving' to ones that are 'struggling.
			CBS News "Universal Default" now allows all creditors to hike interest rates up to 35% when consumers make too many credit applications or are late on a payment of another card.
			American Bankers Association Eight million Americans are delinquent on their credit cards.
			The Federal Reserve The average employee spends 28 hours each month worried about, calculating, or stressed over finances, costing employers $5,000 a year in lost productivity!