Eating healthy on a budgetPlan, plan plan! Before you head to the grocery store, plan your meals for the week. Include meals like stews, casseroles or stir-fries, which “stretch” expensive items into more portions.

Compare and contrast. Locate the “Unit Price” on the shelf directly below the product. Use it to compare different brands and different sizes of the same brand to determine which is more economical.

Buy in season. Buying fruits and vegetables in season can lower the cost and add to the freshness. If you are not going to use them all right away, buy some that still need time o ripen.

Back to basics. Convenience foods like frozen dinners, precut vegetables, shredded cheese, oatmeal or grits will cost you more than if you were to make them from scratch. Take the time to prepare your own — and save!

To learn more about Staples® benefits, visit staples.com/benefits

Know Your Expenses It is imperative to know your fixed expenses and how your are spending your money. It is the first step in determining where you could “trim fat” if the circumstances required it. With dozens of bills, it’s easy to forget exactly what you’re paying for. Having a grasp on these bills and their importance or frivolousness will help you determine a baseline for daily living expenses.

Create a Budget & Stick With It Many times, the most simple tip is the most difficult to implement. Make sure the money you have coming in is greater than the money going out.

Keep an Eye on Your Credit Your credit is only as good as its score and its accuracy. Make sure you pay your bills on time and check annually for any inaccuracies or fraud that may be lowering your score. This score is a number that may dramatically influence your lending interest or even future employment.

Contribute to Your Retirement Whether it is an employer-based 401(k), Simple IRA, Roth or other account type, saving for retirement is extremely important. Eighty percent of Americans aged 30–54 believe they will not have enough money put away for retirement.

Resolutions for your checkbook

JANUARY 2017Benefits Buzz

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Associates who were offered Staples’ full-time medical coverage at any point during 2016 will receive a tax form called the 1095-C, even if they did not enroll in coverage. The 1095-C will be mailed to all associates on January 23, 2017.

The 1095-C is a federal tax form which is part of the Affordable Care Act and shows which months Staples offered you medical coverage and which months you were enrolled in coverage. The Form 1095-C will also display which dependents you enrolled in the plan by month. The information contained on your 1095-C will also be reported to the IRS.

You do not need to file this form with your tax return. However, it is important that you save your 1095-C, because the information provided on this form can help you complete your income tax return for the year. To learn more about Form 1095-C, visit staples.com/benefits.

Form 1095-C: What you need to know

To learn more about Staples® benefits, visit staples.com/benefits

Resolutions for your checkbook(Continued from previous page)

There are so many things to consider in regards to your financial future. Empowering yourself and taking an involved approach is the best away to protect and improve your financial wellness.

Don’t forget your reimbursements!

With the new year, comes the resolve to lose weight and get fit. Staples wants to help you meet these goals.

Associates enrolled in a Staples® UHC or Cigna health plan receive a cash reimbursement for a fitness reimbursement and a weight loss reimbursement. Get reimbursed up to $300 per year for use of a full-service fitness center or the purchase of certain exercise equipment. Get reimbursed up to another $300 per year for attending group Weight Watchers meetings or using a hospital-based, weight-loss program. That’s up to $600 in cash reimbursements!

Visit staples.com/benefits and search under “Forms” for the reimbursement form.

In addition, all associates and their adult dependents qualify for a 15% discount off of the national Weight Watchers program. To join, go to wellness.weightwatchers.com, and input Staples Employer ID 11648975 and Employer Passcode ww11648975.