With a rapidly changing workplace landscape and unpredictable economic conditions, today’s employees are more in need of financial wellbeing support than ever before. Here, our financial education affiliate Emma Waller discusses how reshaping employee wellbeing programmes to include financial wellbeing support not only enhances your employee’s financial health, but also offers unique organisational benefits.
What does financial wellbeing mean to my employees?
After the financial shock of the pandemic and the current economic uncertainty around inflation and interest rate rises, millions are facing challenges in their personal finances. As such, financial wellbeing has become a hot topic in HR circles – and is why organisations should be looking to support their employees though this turbulent time by providing new opportunities to improve financial resilience.
What is financial resilience? In short, this important term refers to our ability to cope when we’re faced with increases in our living costs or reductions in our income.
Improved resilience, greater financial awareness, and the ability to forge healthy money habits have become invaluable skills today. And these problems aren’t limited to outside of the workplace – research by Unmind has found that financial anxieties surrounding the cost of living crisis negatively impact more than half of the UK workforce’s focus at work. By providing new opportunities to learn about and engage with financial wellbeing, employers are able to empower their staff to make informed financial decisions about their money, ensuring they are better prepared for future financial shocks, build confidence around financial products, and develop successful personal money plans and budgets.
Why should I invest in employee financial wellbeing?
According to MaPS (Money and Pensions Service) and National Debtline:
- 47% of us are worried about our money;
- 52% of us don’t have a plan for retirement;
- 32% of us expect our finances to worsen by end of 2024.
As such, there’s a clear gateway for employers to support better financial wellbeing in the workplace, helping to create a more sustainable and socially responsible organisation which leads to a wide range of overall benefits, including:
1. Happier and healthier teams
With reduced financial stress, staff are less anxious and overwhelmed by financial worries, allowing them to better focus on their workplace tasks and relationships. This, in turn, has a knock-on effect on team performance, and reduced stress allows positive working relationships to flourish and creative ideas to be generated.
2. Increases productivity
Poor financial wellbeing impacts business performance, itself then leading to a lack of productivity from staff being distracted by money worries as the stress takes both a physical and mental toll. Providing staff with the strategies and tools to help them manage their money (and emotions) in a safe working environment can help overcome these problems and improve staff performance. Ultimately, improved financial resilience means that your employees aren’t worrying how they’re going to pay their bills or how to reduce their debt, allowing them to stay more focused and engaged in their work.
3. Staff feel valued
Providing the opportunity to explore personal financial strategies and develop better money management techniques can transform a person’s relationship with money. Embedding financial wellbeing programmes in the workplace can lead to improved engagement as they consider their support from a valued employee benefit. In addition, effective financial wellbeing programmes can give employees the confidence to help make better, more informed financial decisions and make effective choices around money, boosting their self-confidence and reducing anxiety surrounding decision-making and leadership.
4. Improve attendance and retention
Both absenteeism and presenteeism are often much higher if a person is facing money problems, as the stress affects their physical and mental health. Addressing money challenges in the workplace can help to reduce absenteeism by providing people with the tools and confidence to manage their financial problems effectively. It’s even been found that if financial wellbeing is effective, staff take less time off dealing with money worries and are more likely to stay if they feel their wellbeing is being supported.
5. Attract better talent
Employees are now looking at how employers manage their wellbeing when considering their careers/job choices. A C-Suite study by Deloitte even found that 57% of employees are considering quitting their jobs for one that better supports their wellbeing.
With employers acknowledging that they could do plenty more to improve financial wellbeing, there’s no better time to start investing in the financial health of your people – don’t forget to check out our expert training course, Money Matters – Financial Wellbeing Training to get your organisation’s financial wellbeing support started.
Don’t forget too that we offer additional financial wellbeing support options via our award-winning Employee Assistance Programme provider Vivup, including debt advice, financial wellbeing guidance, budgeting plans, and more. You can find out more about our EAP here, or get in touch direct about our range of employee benefits and training packages by contacting us on 0151 236 6608, or by email at info@healthatworkcentre.org.uk
