Employee benefits’ 15 minutes

(AP Photo/Ann Heisenfelt)

As summer fades and the workplace moves into its next phase — benefits enrollment season — studies are emerging that support a call for a more proactive benefits education process.

Unum reported earlier this week that a survey of employees revealed that the majority said their employers’ benefits education efforts weren’t working very well for them. Now, the 2014 Aflac Open Enrollment Survey from Aflac that found 41 percent of employees spend 15 minutes or less pouring over their benefits options prior to enrollment. Not paying much attention to their benefits options happens despite the trend toward employees increasingly paying a larger share of their benefits. Premiums paid by employees now average $4,565, according to Aflac.