Work Benefits Terms and Vocabulary
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The Ohio State University
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Benefits
• Medical Benefits
• Unpaid leave
• Dental Benefits
• Sick leave
• Vision Care Benefits
• Personal leave
• Life Insurance Benefits
• Bereavement leave
• Disability Benefits
• Maternity leave
• Bonuses
• Paid time off
• Child care
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Insurance Vocabulary
Premium – the amount paid for insurance: monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, yearly
Benefit – amount of money the policy pays
Beneficiary – person, persons, or organizations receiving the benefit
• Lump Sum: an option for paying benefits to the beneficiary
• Multiple Payment Option: an option for recurring payments of benefits to the
beneficiary, payments are sometimes called annuities
Riders – additional conditions added to the insurance contract providing additional
benefits
Term – length of time a policy is effective
Maturity Date – the date the face amount of a policy becomes payable
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Other Types of Insurance
• Disability: a policy designed to pay benefits if the policy
holder becomes disabled with the intent of the beneficiary
using the benefits for living and medical cost until the
policy holder is able to resume work
• Workman’s comp: a public fun designed to pay
settlements to injured workers
• Long-term care: a policy intended to help pay the high
costs of long term care (such as hospital, nursing home, or
in-home care)
• Medical, Dental, Hearing, Vision
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Types of Life Insurance
(Note: Life insurance may require a physical before an insurance company will
extend coverage)
• Short-Term:
• Insurance that lasts for a specified number of years and no
longer
• Premiums are usually guaranteed not to increase for the
length of the policy
• Meets temporary needs (such as child care)
• Renewable: some policies may be renewed after the term has
expired
• Conversion: portions of some policies may be changed over
to permanent insurance
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Types of Life Insurance
• Long Term:
• Insurance that lasts either for the life of the policyholder or until the policy-holder attains 100 years of
age
• Premiums may be paid for a set term or indefinitely
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Types of Life Insurance
• Long Term/Whole-Life:
• May accumulate interest (which can be tax free); may be
used as collateral for loans (if the policy-holder dies before
the loans are paid, the balance is usually deducted from
the benefit paid to the beneficiary)
• Types:
• Fixed – Life insurance policy wherein benefits are worth a
set value
• Variable – Life insurance policies wherein premiums are
invested; the total value of these policies change with the
performance of the stock market
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Retirement Plans
• 457 Plan: Retirement plan provided to federal government
employees
• 401k plan: Retirement plan provided to private sector
employees
• 403b plan: Retirement plan provided to state employees
• IRA: Private retirement plan that individuals contribute to
independently
• Annuities: Retirement benefits provided through insurance
plans
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Retirement Plans - Information
• Money may be withdrawn:
• Termination of employment
• In-service withdrawal
• If you become permanently disabled
• Death of a participating employee
• Money withdrawn early may be subject to a heavy
tax penalty
• Distributions can be received upon retirement:
• Early retirement is upon 55th birthday; retirement is
upon 65th birthday
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Retirement Plans - Vocabulary
Pre-tax contributions – contributions made to a
retirement account that are deducted from the
paycheck before earnings are subject to income tax
Compounding – when earnings from the retirement
contributions are re-invested in the retirement funds
Inflation – increase in the price of goods or services
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Retirement Plans - Vocabulary
Discretionary matching – employer contributions to a retirement
plan that matches employee contributions up to a certain
percentage
Vested – to become fully entitled to your contributions your
employer has made to your retirement plan, including matching
and discretionary contributions, after a certain period of service
with the employer
Profit-sharing contributions – elective employer contributions to a
retirement plan designed to share company profits with
employees; a type of incentive program
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Additional Benefits
• Relocation expenses/cost
of living adjustments
• Desirable office
• Severance packages
• Technology or special
equipment (i.e. computers)
• Professional membership
• Company Car
dues
• Tuition reimbursement
• Education
• Training Programs
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Questions to ask about Benefits
• Can (medical/dental/vision) coverage be extended to nonmarried partners?
• What kind of leave am I entitled to if I take time off to care for a
sick family member?
• Do you offer paternity leave?
• How does leave/vacation impact my productivity
requirements?
• Do you offer any benefits specific/unique to your company?
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Additional Resources
• http://finance.yahoo.com/education
• http://search.morningstar.com/Glossary/glossary
_A_B.html?wsection=glossary
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“If you’re at a place where you’re stuck
then that’s called a job … if you’re at a
place where you can constantly grow,
that’s a career”
- Everest Institute
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