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Monday, 21st August

Employee financial wellbeing: How to support your people

The ongoing impacts of the cost of living crisis in the UK have been making headlines for many, many months.

According to the Financial Conduct Authority, around 12.9 million UK adults have low financial resilience – that’s 1 in 4 of all UK adults.

With so many of us feeling the strain, it’s more important than ever for workplaces to focus on holistic employee wellbeing – and to step up and support their employees to become financially resilient. In this article we explain how.

  • What is employee financial wellbeing?
  • The link between finances and wellbeing 
  • What is an example of good financial wellbeing?
  • Why is financial wellbeing important for employers to consider?
  • How to improve employee financial wellbeing in the workplace
  • Financial wellbeing questions to include in your next employee survey
  • How to use pulse surveys to create an employee financial wellbeing strategy

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What is employee financial wellbeing?

Financial wellbeing refers to the overall security of individuals when it comes to their money matters. Just like taking care of employees’ physical and emotional health, supporting financial wellbeing is crucial for creating a positive and productive work environment.

 

The link between finances and wellbeing

Money matters can have a profound impact on our mental health and wellbeing. When financial concerns become overwhelming, they can lead to increased stress, anxiety, and even depression. The constant worry about bills, debts, and making ends meet can create a persistent sense of unease. This stress can affect various aspects of life, affecting relationships, work performance, and overall quality of life. The feeling of financial instability can even erode one’s self-esteem and sense of control, adding to the burden on mental wellbeing.

 

What is an example of good financial wellbeing?

Everyone’s financial situation is different, so ‘good’ financial wellness will look different for all of us. The Money and Pensions Service defines good financial wellbeing as feeling secure and in control of your money – now and in the future. It’s about being confident in knowing you will meet your day-to-day expenses and can manage debt responsibly. It’s also about being prepared for rainy days and having achievable medium to long-term money goals.

 

Why is financial wellbeing important for employers to consider?

Financially stressed employees are twice as likely to report poor overall health and are five times more likely to have lower productivity than their peers. As a result, it’s important to be able to identify the employees that need support and be able to address their concerns, especially during this period of high cost of living.

Supporting your employees’ financial wellbeing showcases your company’s commitment to holistic employee welfare and creating an organisational culture that cares. Employees who feel supported in managing their finances are more likely to feel valued and be loyal and committed.

Looking at the bigger picture, addressing financial wellbeing aligns with social responsibility and ethical considerations. It shows your organisation’s dedication to the wellbeing of your workforce – beyond traditional job-related aspects.

quotation mark Financially stressed employees are twice as likely to report poor overall health and are five times more likely to have lower productivity than their peers. quotation mark

PwC Financial Education Report, 2017.

How to improve employee financial wellbeing in the workplace

 

  • Pay a fair salary and be mindful of changes in the economy
    Paying a fair salary is undeniably the cornerstone of employee financial wellbeing, as it directly reflects an organisation’s recognition of an employee’s value and contributes to their financial security. Be aware of ongoing economic changes, the cost of living and up-to-date market value salaries so you can pay your employees as fairly as possible.
  • Educated with financial education workshops
    By teaching budgeting, saving, and investing, these workshops will equip your teams with essential skills to manage their money wisely, reduce financial worries, and identify opportunities to create a more secure and confident financial future.
  • Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs)
    EAP programs offer a safe and private space where your team can chat with experts about their financial concerns. Through confidential counselling, individuals can receive tips on managing money better and techniques to handle stress caused by financial pressures. It’s like having a personal guide to help individuals navigate through the challenges that money worries can cause.
  • Allow flexible work arrangements
    Flexible work arrangements make life a little bit less hectic for employees and helps them ensure their work responsibilities and financial responsibilities can both be managed. It gives them the ability to find a balance between work and personal life, making everything a bit easier.
  • Offer personal financial coaching
    Financial experts act as navigators, tailoring their advice to address each employee’s distinct needs. Whether your team members are looking to create budgets, set aside funds for their aspirations, or decode investment options, these coaches provide a clear path forward in one-to-one sessions, and motivate them as they progress towards their financial milestones.
  • Student loan assistance
    By providing student loan assistance, you’re giving your team members a way to potentially pay off their loans quicker – which will in turn give them a boost on their path to financial freedom and retirement. Plus, these programs often come with resources and tools to help your employees better understand and manage their loans.
  • Retirement planning programs
    Similarly to student loans, By offering retirement planning assistance, you empower your employees to make informed choices concerning their financial freedom for the future. Retirement planning enables your team to grasp the magnitude of saving, investment decisions, and the path toward realising their retirement aspirations.

It’s important to remember that the effectiveness of these initiatives will vary based on your company’s culture, employee demographics, and individual aspirations and needs. It’s essential to gather employee feedback through surveys and adjust your offerings to ensure they resonate with your workforce.

 

Financial wellbeing questions to include in your next employee survey

Here we’ve included a bonus resource for HR teams: Financial wellbeing questions to include in your next employee pulse survey – which will assist you in asking the questions that will give you the insights you need to build a financial wellbeing plan that really supports your employees.

 

Book a call

 

How to use pulse surveys to create an employee financial wellbeing strategy

Pulse surveys are an excellent solution to truly understanding how your employees are feeling financially. By periodically collecting brief, targeted feedback from employees, you can gain real-time insights into the financial challenges and concerns faced by your workforce – and ultimately implement changes to support them. Here’s how to do it:

 

  • Design your pulse surveys: Create short and focused pulse surveys with questions about employees’ financial concerns and needs. Keep them concise to encourage survey participation. You can learn how to create and measure pulse survey results with Stribe’s Ultimate Pulse Survey Handbook
  • Collect insights and feedback: Regularly distribute your pulse surveys to gather real-time feedback from employees. Ask about their financial challenges, worries, and suggestions for improvement.
  • Analyse trends: Review survey responses to identify common themes and trends in employees’ financial worries. Look for patterns that can guide your strategy’s focus. Stribe’s reporting suite does this heavy lifting for you by producing sentiment analysis, key phrase extraction and other clever insights, speeding up the reporting process so you can begin implementing actions asap.
  • Create targeted actions: Based on your survey findings, design financial wellbeing initiatives that directly address the identified challenges your employees are experiencing. The listed strategies in this article are great examples of initiatives with proven results!
  • Keep your employees in the loop: It’s super important to communicate your financial wellbeing strategy and initiatives to your workforce, emphasising the connection between their feedback and the solutions provided. Encourage active participation and continuous feedback to refine and enhance strategy over time.

 

Watch on-demand: How to use pulse surveys to support employee financial wellbeing

Need to know more? Speak to the Stribe team

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