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Benefits Planning Toolkit:

1

Get ready

Agency strategies

Embed benefits conversations into your employment process and agency culture.

Benefits planning isn't separate from employment. It's simply part of the conversation.

It's important to incorporate benefits conversations and planning into your organization's culture. Start by getting current staff up to speed on training opportunities and resources, and then incorporate these resources into training for new staff. Use the strategies below to make sure benefits don't hold people back from reaching their employment goals.

Outcomes to work toward:

  • Agency culture

    Benefits planning is embedded in your agency's culture and the services you provide.

  • Staff capacity

    Staff understanding of work and benefits improves. Staff become more comfortable talking about benefits and work with the people they support. Staff know where to go for help when needed.

  • Communication

    Staff provide accurate and effective messaging and communication around work and benefits. They know where to go and where to point people for more help when needed.

  • Support

    Staff know what information, resources and training are available for themselves and the people they support. They know when they need more help and how to get it when needed.

  • Participants

    People served understand more clearly what will happen to their benefits as they transition to what's next.

Key messages

Five things everyone needs to know and communicate about work and benefits:

  1. Work and benefits can go together.
  2. All public benefit programs in Minnesota support work.
  3. People who work earn more money than those who don't — even if their benefits change.
  4. Some people with disabilities choose not to work, or limit how much they work, because they fear losing their benefits. Benefits should never be the reason someone chooses not to work.
  5. Benefits planning helps people see how work is possible, work to their full potential, save money and get ahead financially.

Get started

As a supervisor, you're not expected to be a benefits expert. However, it's important to provide staff with benefits information, resources and training. Start by reviewing the sample supervisor training plan below.

Step 1

Know and understand the five key messages about work and benefits (outlined above).

Step 2

Visit the Get ready section of the benefits planning toolkit. 

Start by taking the benefits planning self-assessment for insight on your own thoughts and views regarding benefits and work. Discuss questions and results with other supervisors or managers.

Then, review the importance of benefits planning.

From there, review the training levels to determine the level of training needed for your entire agency and for specific staff members. It's expected that all agency staff complete Level 1 training: The basics. Staff who directly support people with disabilities in making informed choices about work should complete Level 2 training: Go deeper.

To see if it would be helpful for your agency to have a trained benefits coach, review Level 3 training: Benefits coach: For supervisors.

Step 3

Review resources and tools to get familiar with the resources and tools available to your staff and the people they support.

Step 4

Complete Level 1 training: The basics and review the related resources.

Step 5

Consider other opportunities for benefits planning support. For example: 

Also consider tying together benefits planning training and conversations with the E1MN waiver employment service providers training.

Start by reviewing the sample staff training plan below.

Level 1: All staff

  1. Know and understand the five key messages about work and benefits (outlined above).
  2. Complete the benefits planning self-assessment. Then discuss at staff meetings or individual check-ins.
  3. Review how to talk about work and benefits. Then discuss at staff meetings or individual check-ins.
  4. Complete Level 1 training: The basics. Then discuss at staff meetings or individual check-ins.
  5. Use online chat to consult a benefits planning expert, if needed.

Level 2: Staff who support people in making informed choices about work

Complete the steps described for level 1 training above. Then:

  1. Complete Level 2 training: Go deeper. Start with Orientation to My Vault, followed by Orientation to DB101. Then progress through each benefit module.
  2. Review My Vault: Benefits planning activities and resources and tools.

Level 3: Staff who spend 10 hours or more talking with people about work and benefits

Complete the steps described for level 1 and level 2 training above. Then:

  1. Join the benefits planning learning community.
  2. Determine if benefits coach certification is right for the staff member and the agency. Review eligibility criteria and certification requirements. If you'd like to proceed, complete the supervisor's recommendation form and benefits coach certification application.

With more in-depth training, benefits coaches are expected to support other agency staff in understanding work and benefits, supporting key messages, and getting help from Disability Hub MN when needed.

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