Employees’ financial health is just as important as their physical and mental health. Progressive companies recognize the potential upside for addressing financial stress.
Here are three points about financial stress that every company exec needs to understand:
- When asked what causes them the most stress, 40% of employees say it is financial challenges/money matters.
- Employees’ financial stress impacts their productivity. 25% of employees report that issues with personal finances have been a distraction at work and 43% of those say that they spend 3 hours or more at work each week thinking about or dealing with issues related to their personal finances. Employees admit that financial worries have impacted their health, relationships, productivity and time away from work.
- Only one-third of employees utilize the financial wellness benefits their employer offers.
Employers offer financial education and financial wellness programs at work in an attempt to help employees change their money behaviors and increase their financial literacy, including online financial education tools, on-site money management and financial planning seminars. Others are providing no-cost and no-liability voluntary benefits that include financial counseling services and employee purchase programs.
By continually engaging employees with their financial wellness programs and the resources available to them, employers can make a significant impact in both adoption rates and overall employee happiness.
When employers help employees with their financial wellness, it pays off. Employees experience a better financial well-being and are less stressed. For employers, the result is productive workers who are engaged and empowered and an increased bottom line.