Financial Well-being in the workplace

Financial Wellbeing in the workplace.

Financial wellbeing relates to the skills and knowledge needed to manage personal finances in a healthy secure fashion. Financial worries are one of the main causes of stress among workers. Positive financial wellbeing leads to greater feelings of security and confidence about their overall financial situation and has a positive effect on mental health.

Employee financial wellbeing in numbers.

Let’s look at how employees are being impacted by poor financial wellbeing.

• 19% of employees lose sleep because they worry about money.
• 10% find it hard to concentrate or make decisions at work because of financial concerns.
• 8% spend time during the day dealing with personal finance problems.
• 6% have had health issues cause by stress relating to finance.
• 51% of employees say that financial wellbeing is a worry for them.
• 71% think that they would be much happier if they had better financial wellbeing.

Barriers to financial wellbeing

Employees are met with several barriers when it comes to managing their money.

• 29% say they only earn enough to get by.
• 16% say there is too much hassle involved in finding ways to cut back on spending. (e.g. switching energy suppliers)
• 13% say they don’t have time.
• 11% say they don’t understand the terminology in the financial industry.
• 9% say they can’t afford to get advice.

Organisations have the power and means to address these barriers by introducing a workplace financial wellbeing programme.

A feeling of taking back control of one’s own financial wellbeing has been shown to be impactful in combatting workplace financial stress. When employers invest in financial wellbeing, they are providing them with support and education that will help them to take ownership over their own financial situation. With access to impartial financial wellbeing experts, employees will be able to design ways to better manage their money and alleviate any additional stress their financial situation may be causing.

Benefits for employers.

By investing in a financial wellness programme, employers promote and support a positive workplace which in turn has several benefits, most notably in an increase in productivity and employee retention.

Productivity

The outcomes of Financial Wellbeing Programmes include reduced absenteeism and presenteeism, less external distractions, and less time spent managing personal financial matters at work. This all amounts to improved levels of productivity among employees.

While increasing salaries and adding benefits are of great help to employees, being encouraged to understand the value of their reward package and how to maximise their take-home pay is of higher value to their wellbeing.

When employees trust the organisation they work for and the independent experts they make available to them, they feel supported and cared for, which increases staff satisfaction. Ultimately this results in a want to do the best work they can for the company. Additionally, with onsite consultations available, the number of days missed due to dealing with financial worries will dramatically decrease.

Employee Retention

Employee retention is one of the primary targets for many HR departments, and Financial Wellbeing is one such way to encourage this. Employees who feel that their concerns are being addressed and cared for by their employees are more likely to remain loyal to the business. This means the organisation maintains an experienced team with invaluable knowledge.

 

We offer an On-Site Financial Advisory Service to companies – give the team a call today if you would like this service in your company

Tel: 091 788000. E: admin@hcgroup.ie www.hcgroup.ie