Supporting Underserved Groups and Communities

Supporting Underserved Groups and Communities

We are committed to developing solutions to address financial inequities, as well as offering these products to underserved populations who often need them most.

Global Sustainability Governance
Colleagues in India volunteer at a local school to raise awareness about oral health.

Products that Drive Financial Wellness and Inclusion

MetLife’s products help individuals access resources, care and financial support throughout their lives, promoting greater financial stability and wellness. Through products, services and partnership programs, MetLife’s Financial Wellness and Engagement group provides long-term solutions that bring financial wellness and education to individuals while strengthening our relationship with employers. This includes understanding the needs and financial behaviors of all communities. Learn more about financial wellness products.

  • PlanSmart®, our multi-channel experience that focuses on behavioral change, offers tools and guidance that empower our 
 customers’ employees to build financial literacy, confidence and well-being. PlanSmart® includes financial tools and financial 
 education workshops provided by specially trained third-party financial professionals and administered via webinar or in 
 person.1 Many webinars are conducted for diverse audiences during celebratory periods, such as Women’s History Month.
  • We have made our Will Preparation and Digital Estate Planning Services available to members enrolled in life insurance 
 through MetLife Worldwide Benefits, our business for globally mobile employees. Members now have access to an extensive network of more than 18,000 participating plan attorneys for will preparation and estate resolution needs.
We also offer services to provide support for the costs of education. Examples include:
  • PNB MetLife Genius Plan, a savings plan that provides guaranteed benefits and allows customers to create a customized pay-out structure, helping parents pay for education while balancing their financial protection needs;
  • My Child Education Protection Plan, an education insurance plan for parents in Bangladesh and Nepal to prevent a child’s education from being hampered by financial hardship; and
  • Kids’ Dream, a variable universal life solution for customers in Korea, which can help parents grow their savings and their child’s education budget.
In addition, we focus on the accessibility and affordability of our products and services to provide options that help address the insurance coverage gap, including:
  • Rural Term Insurance: In Nepal, MetLife offers Rural Term Insurance to customers of local microfinance institutions and cooperatives.
  • Mini Insurance: In Korea, MetLife provides multiple products that offer customers low-cost coverage (approximately USD $4.25 per year), while PNB MetLife in India offers a government-backed, low-cost insurance product for customers with low incomes, especially those who are unbanked or in remote areas.
  • khUshi: PNB MetLife introduced an app for customers to track fund value, make policy-related changes and pay premiums, helping to eliminate the need for in-person visits to branch offices.

How Our Products Support Diverse Needs

MetLife’s solutions, along with accessible education and resources, help diverse individuals from all backgrounds fulfill their purpose. We support inclusivity through our products and plans in three ways:

  1. 1. Product and Pricing—We have one of the broadest portfolios of products that serve diverse populations and unique needs;
  2. 2. Access—We are committed to providing product access for all through inclusive benefit solutions and services, including our broad provider networks, benefit price points and diverse service providers; and

  3. 3. Customer Experience—We provide care and support to drive an inclusive experience (language support, digital servicing and accessibility, and customized communications).

We seek to understand the diversity of our enterprise customers’ employees, analyzing data around product and benefit usage and translating that information to strengthen our product pipeline. According to our previous studies, DEI-specific features of our products resonate well with customers’ employees, feel relevant to various populations and could be instrumental in enabling employers to achieve their goals. We’ve instituted training and support for product teams, account executives, sales teams and other customer-focused colleagues to help them find new ways to address customers’ equity needs on a daily basis.

We also draw on findings from our annual U.S. EBTS that focuses on the evolving workforce dynamics, trends and challenges impacting today’s diverse workforce. For example, this includes the ways in which employers can support women in the workforce.

MetLife offers several products targeted toward the healthcare needs of women.

  • In Nepal, LifeCare—Beautiful was designed to cover nine women-specific diseases, including breast and cervical cancer treatments, the two most common cancers for women in the country.
  • MetLife Brazil offers discounted group life insurance to companies with an employee base of at least 40% women and where women have an average salary greater than or equal to 90% of the average salary of men.
  • MetLife Mexico, in partnership with the National Financial Services Consumer Protection Agency and the National Institute for Women, launched “Te Quiero Segura,” a web platform with tools, information and solutions that promote inclusion and financial security for Mexican women.

Colleagues in Bratislava, Slovakia, during Customer Service Week.

Other products have provisions and services intended to support individuals who are seniors; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and other (LGBTQ+); caregivers; ethnically or racially diverse; veterans; and people with disabilities.

  • When customers are choosing providers, our diverse networks for dental services and for MetLife Legal Plans allow customers to choose providers and professionals who speak their chosen language or align with other preferred cultural competencies.
  • Through a collaboration with Family First, MetLife Legal Plans gives enrollees and their families who are struggling with caregiver burnout access to expert care teams. These teams are composed of nurses, physicians, social workers and mental health professionals.
READ MORE IN THIS CHAPTER
 
Read more in this Chapter

Products and Services That Support the Environment

Continue Reading >

Read our 2023 Sustainability Report

for more information on MetLife initiatives and progress.

1. The financial professionals providing financial education are not affiliated with MetLife but are providing the program under a service provider contract.