The majority of wage earners believe they have only a 2 percent or less chance of being disabled for three months or more during their working careers. But the actual odds of a worker being disabled for at least six months is 33 percent.

"One reason for this discrepancy could be what workers think causes a disability," Koll says. "Lifelong ailments aren't the main cause of disabilities. The vast majority—91 percent—are caused by common illnesses or health conditions such as cancer, childbirth or heart attack. That means many disabilities aren't covered by workers' compensation."

The problem is most workers don't have the financial resources to main their family's current standard of living in the event of a disability or death of a wage earner. More than a third of households say they'd immediately have trouble meeting everyday living expenses if a primary wage earner died today. In fact, 61 percent of American workers live paycheck to paycheck. And their employers aren't unaware of this: In a recent Colonial Life survey, 65 percent of employers said they didn't think their employees would be able to maintain their current standard of living if they were unable to work for two or three months because of an illness or accident.

Colonial Life says employers can help their workers by creating an affordable yet strong financial safety net by offering voluntary life and disability insurance.

"Voluntary insurance plans allow employers to offer cost-effective protection at little to no direct cost to the business," Koll says. "By integrating voluntary benefits such as the basics of life and disability coverage with existing medical benefits, employers can go a long way toward helping employees protect themselves against financial exposure."