Seven out of ten employees have experienced financial stress, contributing to sleep loss, reduced motivation at work and even suicidal feelings.
Sleep loss is now the biggest impact of employee worries, with money concerns a major cause. 73% of employees have financial worries, up from 63% four years ago.
Our latest Health at Work report also shows that money worries are affecting the everyday life of more than a third of employees, with women and younger workers the most affected.
With the Budget set to increase the financial strain on employees even more, we share five steps for reducing financial stress.
Five steps for reducing financial stress on employees
1. Start the conversation early
Money worries are still one of the most stigmatised wellbeing topics, with two-fifths of employees uncomfortable raising financial concerns with their manager.
Encouraging open conversations helps identify issues before they escalate, so make it clear employees don’t need to wait until they’re in crisis to reach out.
Promote any financial support services you have in place, including your Employee Assistance Programme (EAP), and train managers to proactively signpost to support.
Early indicators that someone might be struggling include reluctance to travel into the office, contribute to gifts, skipping lunch, requesting overtime, distraction and unexpected absence.
2. Understand your workforce
Our Health at Work report shows that different demographics are being affected by money worries in very different ways, requiring organisations to tailor their approach.
Over three quarters of 18–34-year-olds have financial worries, compared to less than one in two employees aged over 55, and 77% of women are struggling, compared to 67% of men.
We also know that individuals with ADHD are more prone to impulsive spending and family breakdown means single mothers and men paying child maintenance are struggling.
Similarly, those who have care responsibilities or who have been impacted by an illness can also end up in financial difficulty, so review your workforce demographic and tailor support.
3. Offer practical education
There are also many individuals in work who don’t realise they could be entitled to state benefits for care responsibilities or disabilities, worth hundreds of pounds a month.
By encouraging them to call the EAP for a welfare check, you can make sure those who are struggling because they lack the extra support they need can start getting this.
Others are struggling because the increased cost of living means habits they used to be able to afford, such as eating out or home improvements, are now leading to mounting debt.
By providing simple money management workshops, you can empower employees to take control of their spending and calculate their actual disposable income to prioritise spending.
4. Provide emotional support
Feeling like you can’t provide for yourself, or your family, can result in feelings of shame, which is one of the most debilitating emotions we can experience.
This can severely affect mental health, leading to low mood, anxiety or even suicidal thoughts. It can also increase drug and alcohol use, creating additional problems.
They might have entered into financial difficulties because an illness, relationship breakdown or bereavement overwhelmed them and they didn’t have the capacity to think about money.
It’s therefore vital to connect people with emotional, as well as practical support, so they’re not only given a financial plan to help, but a chance to release their feelings to move forward.
5 .Make the business case
One in two (53%) employees want access to financial wellbeing support, but just one in ten (12%) are able to utilise this, meaning many people are unnecessarily struggling.
To help make the business case for financial support at your organisation, use data on absenteeism, presenteeism and staff turnover linked to financial issues.
Our Health at Work research found that employees given proactive help to stay healthy are eight times more productive and twice as likely to take no sick leave.
Also bear in mind that some support is better than no support. Highlight low-cost options, such as budgeting workshops and communications to maximise visibility of the EAP.
By Elaine Preston, welfare and benefits advisor, PAM Group
