I really don’t enjoy the benefit enrollment process that big companies put their employees through every year. I realize that in order to have efficiency and to allow for cost savings, plan changes, etc. etc. that change is inevitable. However, how am I supposed to do my job and simultanously decipher nuggets like the below?

The maximum monthly benefit for BLAH is $3,000. The maximum monthly benefit for Option 2 is $22,000. The maximum monthly benefit for Option 3 is $3,500. Options 2 and 3 build on Option 1. If you elect Option 2 or 3, you also have Option 1. Certain exclusions may apply

Did that make your eyes cross? It’s language such as this that necessitates the existence of HR people. However, just try to get one on the line sometime or ask one a question and you’ll get nowhere. It’s sort of like most job preservation, I guess: make it look mystifying in order to justify somebody without motivation saying “you handle that.”