Why Employee Financial Wellness is Important for Your Business
We’ve all heard it—healthy employees perform better, right? We’re not only referring to your employee’s physical health, but also their financial health.
According to a survey from CreditCards.com, 47% of Americans currently have credit card debt, and a recent Morgan Stanley study states that 78% of employees who are experiencing high financial stress admit they are distracted by it at work.
Financial stress affects individuals across all income levels. That means there’s likely to be financially-stressed employees throughout your entire company. Employees who are feeling burdened by financial stresses may even feel out of control—which can be consuming and exhausting in itself—and can ultimately lead to overall dissatisfaction at work.
While most employers would probably prefer to have happy employees across the board, it’s important to understand that even the most content workplaces will encounter a financially-stressed employee every now and then. That’s why you should know what to look for and what you can do to keep your staff financially well. Watch for these signs to gauge your employee’s overall health:
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Decreased commitment and engagement—Whether or not an employee directly correlates their budget concerns with their current salary, financial concerns are likely to play a part in the level of engagement and/or commitment that your employee feels toward their job.
Financially-stressed workers are more likely to show signs of dissatisfaction, which can easily snowball into lowered morale, an unmotivated attitude and a lack of longevity. As an employer, you want to give your employee’s opportunities for success but feeling financially unwell can lead to disengagement and a variety of other concerns for both the employee and employer.
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Increased turnover—Let’s face it, employee turnover is expensive and time consuming, depending on the position and level of training required. The overall happiness of an employee includes many factors. Although not all are directly correlated to pay, feeling stretched too thin financially can easily push an individual to change an outside factor—such as their current career.
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Decrease in overall health—Numerous studies have shown that stress has many side effects on overall health, such as weight gain, depression and sleep dysfunction, just to name a few. Those feeling financially unwell are more likely to suffer from these side effects—this can not only affect work performance but can also increase unscheduled time off. According to Savology, financially stressed employees miss 3.5 more workdays each year, and 58% of employees experience financial stress that has an impact on their work.
As an employer, you want to have engaged, committed and energetic employees who feel positive about their work and personal lives. One way to help accomplish this goal is to offer services and support to employees in financially difficult situations.
As a whole, employees who don’t have to look outside their employer for financial counseling or other financial wellness tools are more engaged, committed and more likely to put their best selves forward more often. Consider some of the following options to help employees improve their financial wellness and overall work performance:
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Offer quarterly financial counseling where employees can learn how to better manage their money, decrease spending, improve their credit score and more.
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Have self-serve educational resources available for employees to access at their leisure.
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Identify an in-house expert within your own company who can share spending, saving and investing tips and address common financial questions.
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Leverage your company-sponsored 401(k) plan or Employee Assistance Program to see if they offer additional educational tools and resources.
The well-being of your employees goes beyond their physical health. Protect and encourage your most valuable assets by making financial education and support a benefit and perk of working at your company.
Originally posted on CUInsight.com
