Securian Financial Group, Inc.

Winning Years: 2011, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2005, 2004
Industry: Insurance
Location: St. Paul, Minn.
Website:  www.securian.com

Securian Financial Group, Inc., employees looking to phase into retirement can transfer from full-time to part-time status as business needs allow. They also can retain full-time status and full-time benefits under the Voluntary Time Off program and work only 90 percent of a full-time schedule. The time off can be taken all at once or intermittently throughout the year.

See also: How the 2011 Best Employers winners were selected.

In addition, Securian provides free week long pre-retirement counseling seminars for employees age 50 and over and their spouses.

Additional Policies and Practices:

Recruiting: Securian's Intrasource Pool Staffing Coordinator contacts retirees to determine if they are interested in working in temporary or part-time roles. Recruiters have rehired previous employees and retirees.

Workplace Culture/Continued Opportunities: Full-and part-time employees are offered the following learning and development programs: tuition reimbursement, in-house classroom training, online training and certification classes. Employees must work at least 30 hours per week to be eligible for the tuition reimbursement benefit and at least 20 hours per week for the remaining programs.

Securian offers over 100 in-house training programs to employees. In addition, noontime seminars of particular interest to employees age 50 and over are offered, including Cholesterol and Heart Healthy Eating, Roth IRA Conversion — Is It Right For You?, Memory Loss and Aging, Retooling for Retirement, Financial Strategies For People In their 50's, 60's, and Financial and Legal Issues that Affect the Elderly.

Long-service anniversaries are celebrated with announcements, parties and awards.

Employees have opportunities to gain new experiences by working on temporary assignments in other departments, working on team projects and participating in a formal job rotation program.

Accommodations are made for employees including reassigning non-essential functions within a job, purchasing special equipment and technology, creating modified work schedules and implementing a successful telecommuting plan during an employee's recovery or incapacitation.
 
Benefits/Health: Employees working 20 or more hours per week are offered individual and family medical coverage, individual and family prescription drug coverage, individual and family vision and dental insurance, as well as short-term disability. All employees are offered individual and family long-term care insurance and those working 40 or more hours per week can receive long-term disability.

Health benefits for retirees include individual and spouse medical and drug coverage, individual and spouse vision coverage, as well as individual and spouse life insurance or other death benefit coverage.

New hires are eligible for all of the above benefits upon retirement. Domestic partner benefits are also offered to employees and retirees.

Flexible spending accounts (FSAs) are available to assist in covering out-of-pocket health care costs.

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