Congratulations to our good friend, W. Harold Petersen, who recently celebrated his 83rd birthday. The photo was taken at the Petersen International Underwriters office, where he still works daily. The Petersen staff (which includes his three sons and several grandchildren) feted him by wearing his favorite red and providing an all-day pot luck feast.
Harold Petersen, who is considered an icon in the disability insurance market, began in the insurance business 63 years ago with Mutual of Omaha. He has gone on to build a successful and well-respected company focusing on the specialty markets of disability, AD&D, kidnap/ransom, and international major medical fields.
The 2011 Retirement Confidence Survey, recently released by the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI), Washington, DC, and cosponsored by the Principal Financial Group, found more than one quarter of workers (27 percent)—the most ever in the two decades of the survey—now say they are “not at all confident” about having enough money to live comfortably in retirement.
The survey finds that many systemic conditions are forcing Americans to redefine retirement, such as high unemployment rates; government fiscal crises; rising health care costs; lower investment returns; a surging older population putting pressure on Social Security and Medicare; and longer life expectancies.
Roughly one third of both workers and retirees said they had to dip into their savings last year to pay for basic expenses. Significantly, those with retirement savings—such as a 401(k) or an individual retirement account (IRA)—were far less likely than those without these accounts to tap into their savings.
Well over one third (42 percent) say they determined their retirement savings need by guessing. More than one half of the workers say they have less than $25,000 in total savings and investments, excluding their homes. A significant number of workers (20 percent) say they now intend to retire later (at an older age) than they had planned. Yet almost one half of the current retirees (45 percent) say they retired earlier than they planned, mainly because of a health problem or disability.
It’s critically important for you as a financial services professional to take steps to improve the chances your clients will have enough for retirement. By helping them create a plan, you can get them on a realistic path to a secure retirement.
Wait, there is some good news! According to studies of generation Y, conducted online by Harris Interactive for UNUM, the youngest generation in the work force has become more engaged in learning about the benefits that can protect them financially.
The studies, conducted in August 2008 and August 2010, found: The percentage of members of generation Y who said they are extremely/very familiar with life insurance jumped from 31 to 44 percent; those who said they are extremely/very familiar with retirement accounts grew from 31 to 43 percent; and those extremely/very familiar with disability insurance increased from 16 to 24 percent. Generation Y numbers about 75 million—nearly the size of the 80-million-strong baby boomer generation.
The workplace continues to be their most reliable source for benefits information, with 68 percent citing it as a top resource. Yet they are also more likely to seek out information about financial protection benefits online than they were just two years ago.
There are some interesting ideas about marketing retirement products in this issue. Plus the online edition will discuss employee benefit enrollments. To help you gear up for Disability Awareness Month, this month’s “Monthly Update” section is devoted to disability insurance. Most Americans place great value on their work life, and employee benefits is at the core of that. Use this issue to your advantage.
Donald L. Mowery, of Little Rock, AR, passed away on Sunday, March 6, 2011, at Baptist Medical Center in Little Rock. He was born on April 24, 1937, in Mechanicsburg, PA.
A Shippensburg State Teacher’s College graduate, Mowery and Jiggs Ramsey have been partners in The ASA Group, a marketing organization with the primary focus of benefitting the professional life insurance producer.
Mowery is survived by his wife and best friend, Elaine; daughter, Vickie Verbos; three stepchildren, Michael Baker, Dawn Wilson, and James Baker; grandson, Marcus Verbos, and granddaughter, Gloria Ray Baker; stepgrandson, Jeremiah Palmer; two great-grandchildren; siblings, Hal Mowery (wife, Phyllis), Richard Mowery (wife, Roberta), Lois Ann Layton (husband, Tom); several nieces and nephews; as well as his beloved buddy, “Jackson.”
Memorials may be made in his honor in lieu of flowers to the Ronald McDonald House of Arkansas, 1009 Wolfe Street, Little Rock, AR 72202 or to the Humane Society of Pulaski County, 14600 Colonel Glenn Road, Little Rock, AR 72210. [SAC]
