Businesses will be forced to re-think their group income protection (IP) offerings when the Governme...
Businesses will be forced to re-think their group income protection (IP) offerings when the Government's welfare reforms come into force next year, according to Watson Wyatt.
In a survey conducted by the firm, 87% of employers said the reform would force employers to re-think their group IP plans, and over half said they would consider a full review of their benefits offering.
According to Kevin Newman, senior consultant at Watson Wyatt, the reforms imply greater onus on employers assisting employees returning to employment.
The reform, the largest of its kind in a decade, will come into effect in autumn 2008 and aims to reduce the number of people claiming incapacity benefit by a million within 10 years, increase employment to 80%, enable 300,000 lone parents to work and raise the number of workers over the age of 50 by one million.
