Extreme Income Disparity

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Assuming you were looking for a new management position for your next job, you would scour employment opportunities to find something that met your criteria.  In this hypothetical scenario, you eventually find a couple of job opportunities wherein both employers agree to interview you.  You dazzle them at your interview, and in the next week, you receive job offers from each of them.  Since the management position at both employers is virtually identical, you’re indifferent as to which one to take.  So, the ultimate decision comes down to salary.

 

  • Employer “A” offers you $100,000 of salary per year plus health coverage, vacation, 401(k), etc.
  • Employer “B” offers you $98,000 of salary per year with the same benefits AND a provision whereas if you ever get too sick or injured to do your job, they will pay you $4,000/mo. up until you turn 65.

 

Which job would you take?  Many of you reading this are of a sound mind and plan for contingencies—therefore you would probably (and rationally) choose to accept the job with employer “B.”  After all, the $2,000 annual income difference pales in comparison to the potential benefit of coverage should you and your family need it.

 

Folks, we are talking about DISABILITY INSURANCE…and many working Americans do not have it!!  Here are some other important statistics provided by the Council for Disability Awareness that might make you think twice about insuring your ability to earn income:

  • Just over 1 in 4 of today’s 20 year-olds will become disabled before they retire.1
  • Over 37 million Americans are classified as disabled; about 12% of the total population. More than 50% of those disabled Americans are in their working years, from 18-64.2
  • 61% of surveyed wage earners personally know someone who has been disabled and unable to work for 3 months or longer.3
  • Can your family live on $1,130 a month? That’s the average monthly benefit paid by Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) at the end of 2012.(9)
  • The average group long-term disability claim lasts 34.6 months.4
  • One in eight workers will be disabled for five years or more during their working careers.5
  • Approximately 90% of disabilities are caused by illnesses rather than accidents.(6)
  • 68% of adult Americans have NO savings earmarked for emergencies.7
  • 69% of workers in the private sector have no private long-term disability insurance.8
  • 93% received less than $2,000 per month.3

 

Would you like a free quote?  Do you have 5-minutes to discuss how important your income is to you?  Do you want to ‘insure’ your income?  Call my office (818) 249-4984 for a quote today.  You might be risking too much by ‘not’ having it!

 

  1. U.S. Social Security Administration, Fact Sheet February 7, 2013
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2011
  3. Council for Disability Awareness, Disability Divide Consumer Disability Awareness Study, 2010
  4. Gen Re, U.S. Group Disability Rate & Risk Management Survey 2012, based on claims closed in 2011
  5. Commissioner’s Disability Insurance Tables A and C, assuming equal weights by gender and occupation class
  6. U.S. Federal Reserve Board, Survey of Consumer Finances, 2010
  7. U.S. Social Security Administration, Disabled Worker Beneficiary Data, December 2012
  8. Council for Disability Awareness, Long-Term Disability Claims Review, 2012
  9. U.S. Social Security Administration, Disabled Worker Beneficiary Data, December 2012
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