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[Case Study] CGIB Catastrophic Hybrid Insurance Plan: A Solution for the Diverse Workplace
By: Benefits by Design | Tuesday August 23, 2022
In collaboration with the Canadian Group Insurance Brokers (CGIB), Benefits by Design (BBD) launched the CGIB Catastrophic Hybrid Insurance Plan (CHIP) in 2021.
Introducing the New, Fully-Pooled Catastrophic Hybrid Insurance Plan
With a year of performance under its belt, the CGIB “CHIP” plan, as it has affectionately been nicknamed, has its first case study. In this study, the CHIP plan proves to be a viable solution for a very diverse workforce facing employee turnover, providing stable and predictable costs and claims flexibility.
The CGIB Case Study: Company Overview
The company involved in this case study was much like any other — they were interested in attracting and retaining top talent in a competitive job market. The work required employees to travel for up to 2 to 4 weeks at a time, with much of the work being completed overnight.
What’s more, the company was beginning to see high turnover, particularly among new hires who were having difficulty adjusting to the travel and work hours necessary for their positions.
Meeting the Needs of a Diverse Workforce
Another aspect relevant to their benefits needs was the company’s diverse workforce. The mix of employees ranged from younger and single new hires, established employees the company wanted to retain, and longer term employees in older demographics.
The Problem
The responsibilities of the job were varied, and the organization had found that it took anywhere from 9 to 12 months to determine if an employee would be a suitable fit for the job. The unique work involving frequent travel and atypical hours had proven not to be a good fit for everyone. With the company’s current benefits offerings, they were seeing high usage and high turnover — something wasn’t working.
Additionally, in the line of work these employees were in, there was a very real, if minor, possibility that an employee could experience dismemberment or injury of their hands in their daily work. With all of this in mind, the proposed benefits plan would need to attract and retain top talent, offer a plan design for a diverse workforce, and provide robust coverage in times of catastrophic accidents.
The Solution
It was clear to all parties that a traditional benefits plan was not the answer. Thus, a unique hybrid approach through the CGIB CHIP Plan was put forward.
Firstly, a delay in participation of the full benefits plan was implemented. This allowed the company time to determine if the employee would be a good fit or not. However, a near year-long waiting period would have made attracting and retaining employees difficult, and so basic coverage through a $1,000 Health Care Spending Account (HCSA) was provided after a 3-month probation period. Twelve months later, insured benefits would become available and the HCSA allotment would increase to $2,000.
Secondly, the unique hybrid method of the CGIB CHIP Plan allowed claims flexibility through the HCSA. Employees could prioritize their HCSA dollars to cover what they most needed, allowing a diverse set of workers to access the coverage that was most important to them. At the same time, they were covered with Life and Disability Insurance for major and unforeseen illnesses, accidents, and injuries.
The Results
At the end of the day, the organization was set up with a unique CGIB CHIP solution that offered claims flexibility for their diverse workforce, while protecting and insuring their workers against catastrophic accidents and injuries.
What’s more, they were able to control costs and ensure their covered employees were there to stay by implementing a delay to access insured benefits, while still attracting and retaining new employees with a HCSA.
Learn more about how the CGIB CHIP Plan served as a unique solution to this company’s needs by downloading the full Case Study!
Download the Case Study (PDF: 67 KB)
