While work wellness programs are now widespread, employee financial wellness and security should be part of these programs.
When it comes to budgeting, many Americans don’t manage their finances well and in spite of the availability of information, about two-thirds cannot pass a basic financial literacy test.
In our post on ‘How Technology Can Help You Start Investing’ we covered a few budgeting apps like ‘Mint’ and ‘YouNeedABudget’ to help individuals budget and save. This is important, as financially secure employees are also more productive, more engaged, less likely to leave, and have better job performance.
So, it’s in your best interest to ensure their financial wellbeing.
MAKE YOUR BUSINESS MORE ATTRACTIVE
Acquiring skilled and dedicated workers to join your teams will create a strong foundation for your company. To attract top talent, you’ll need some tangible benefits with which to attract them.
By providing an employer-matched 401(k) and access to retirement counseling, you are giving your employees an incentive to invest and save, by matching their contributions up to a certain amount. With 22% of Americans having less than $5,000 for retirement, helping your employees put money away for old age shows that you believe in your company enough to invest in your employees. It also proves you’re stable, which will help you attract more talent.
MINIMIZE TURNOVER RATE
High turnover can seriously hurt your business and will not only impact your bottom line, but employees constantly coming and going will also grind company progress to a halt. It’s very difficult to establish experienced teams when you have to hire new people constantly.
By offering a financial benefits package, which includes a matched 401(k), paid vacations and good health plans, among others, you are showing that you have your teams’ best interests in mind and value their performance at work. It can help build closer and more productive tightly knit teams that will stay because they know that this employer has invested in their future.
MORE PRODUCTIVE TEAMS
With the average American having around $38,000 in debt, engagement and productivity can seriously suffer when employees are focused on their debt. While you may think that increasing salaries will resolve a debt crisis, HR specialist Suzanne Lucas explains that many with a six-figure income live paycheck-to-paycheck.
Some make the mistake of increasing their spending habits because they earn more. A survey commissioned by Marcus reveals that people earning under six figures say they consider $7,200 owed to a bank as ‘debt’, while those with incomes over six figures have a higher debt threshold of about $24,500. The article goes on to explain how increased salaries can affect the debt threshold of a worker.
Debt is a source of stress and lost productivity. Therefore, start by providing personal finance and credit coaching and teach your employees to reduce their debt-to-income ratio. It will not only improve their finances but also their productivity and your bottom line.
HIGHER MORALE
When employees know that they have more than just a salary to look forward to working for you, it tends to boost their morale. By understanding and addressing the needs of your teams, employees will be more dedicated. They will treat your company as more than just a place of work and more like a family that’s invested in their security.
For example, many employees are caregivers, with Yahoo! Finance revealing that 45% of employees provide care for a family member. This can often cause financial and psychological strain that can impact their performance at work.
Showing that you care by offering open and honest communication and providing counseling and financial services will increase their loyalty and happiness, and encourage them to put their best work in.
HEALTHY EMPLOYEES
Frequent employee absences are common in workplaces that have a toxic environment or don’t care enough for the health of their workers. Healthcare can get very expensive and most Americans don’t have enough saved for unforeseen medical expenses.
By providing a good medical/dental plan with medical insurance, you are taking another financial load off of your employees. There is also a better likelihood they will have regular and preventative checkups, which will help ensure that sick leaves are kept to a minimum.
Offering sick leave as part of your company policy will also ensure that sick employees who may be contagious do not infect others and will help improve the overall health of your teams.
