Unum's business is focused on providing basic financial protection to individuals and families through the workplace. The workplace has become the most important point of access for individuals to receive financial protection benefits and every dollar spent by employers on these programs returns a significantly greater economic value to workers who receive them. Employer-sponsored benefits can play a major role in addressing the need for financial protection among working Americans and in relieving pressure from government resources. That's why we are committed to working with the government to build strong public private partnerships that offer innovative solutions that ensure this protection remains widely accessible and affordable to all employees and that serve the broader public good.

Unum contributes to the public discussion of financial protection and its complex challenges by sharing our expertise with policymakers. Both individually and as part of a larger industry coalition and through our membership in trade associations, we meet with legislators and government officials to share our views on disability, life and voluntary benefits, and to urge them to preserve and strengthen employee benefits and the network that delivers them.

Our employees have spoken at the House of Commons in the U.K., testified before Congressional committees and met with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the Social Security Administration.

We've shared our expertise with the Department of Labor and the Government Accountability Office on the value of our products, particularly the return to work assistance we provide, and established partnerships with non-profit organizations such as the Consumer Federation of America, the Employee Benefits Research Institute and The Aspen Institute.

Unum sponsored a groundbreaking study done in partnership with Charles River Associates, a leading global research and consulting firm, to examine the value our products have for consumers and the government. The results are clear: the social welfare gain for both consumers and the government would be much greater if more people had access to financial protection coverage, especially at the lower- and middle-income levels.

Similar research conducted with respected U.K. think tank Demos showed that the British government could see similar savings if more citizens obtained private income protection coverage.

These studies, along with other thought leadership research sponsored by Unum and conducted in partnership with Harvard Business Review Analytics Services and Monster.com elevate Unum's position as a credible and authoritative voice on the important role of financial protection benefits in the workplace.

Unum regularly communicates with lawmakers, both directly and through our trade associations, about the impact of legislation and regulations in a number of areas, including financial services, corporate tax, and health care. To learn more about our lobbying activities and our trade association memberships, please click here.

Unum recognizes that the actions of public policymakers have the potential to impact our daily business operations, and our political action committee, UnumPAC, offers us one tool for engaging in the process.

We also realize the importance of transparency as it relates to our corporate political contributions. Access our policy statement on political contributions and our 2012 annual political contributions report. You may also view previous reports from 2011 and 2010.