Durham, NC - In May, Duke staff and faculty will receive a personalized benefits statement that presents components of their total compensation - everything from pay to savings toward retirement.

The statement offers an opportunity for employees to review benefits and assess whether or not they are on track to meet their retirement goals and if insurance and other benefits are still meeting their needs.

Sylvester Hackney, associate director of benefits at Duke, encourages staff and faculty to take a close look at retirement income section of the statement, which gives an overview of retirement savings and projected monthly income in retirement.

"Getting your benefit statement can be an annual reminder to take the time to review your financial situation," Hackney said.

In 2011, Duke spent about $1.9 billion in direct pay to faculty and staff. In addition, the university spent about $452 million on benefits such as health insurance, social security, educational assistance and retirement plans. The sum of all these amounts is referred to as "Total Compensation."

In addition to pay in 2011, the personalized benefits statement also lists insurance plans and reimbursement accounts and gives details on how much an employee's beneficiaries would receive if the employee dies while on Duke's payroll.

For those who want to take that closer look at retirement savings, the benefits statement has a useful section - "Am I On Target?" - to calculate potential monthly income in retirement.

"It's a very easy way to see if you are on target with your retirement savings," Hackney said. "Checking that calculation each year should be part of everyone's annual fiscal checkup."