Log in
Book a Demo

5 Surprising Symptoms of Financial Stress (And 5 Helpful Solutions) Read it here.

Can Transparency Close the Pay Gap?

Can Transparency Close the Pay Gap?

by | Oct 29, 2018 | Blog

Can transparency close the pay gap? Transparency can close the gender pay gap, but open discussions about compensation are still taboo in the workplace. 

Close to half of employees believe men are paid more than women, particularly in technology and banking and finance, according to recent research conducted by beqom, a cloud-based compensation software provider.

Why? Over a third of employees believe managers set pay based on feelings and opinions about the employee rather than an employee’s performance, experience or skill set.

Pay discussion isn’t as taboo as it once was. Nearly half of employees know how much their colleagues make or have discussed their salary with colleagues. It’s a generational trend as more than half of Millennials share or discuss their salary with colleagues compared to roughly 30 percent of Baby Boomers.

The CEO Pay Gap

There’s another fair compensation concern employees think about, the CEO pay gap. The vast majority of employees believe that most CEOs and top executives of companies today make too much compared to their employees. More than half of workers want to know what their CEO makes. Almost 30 percent of them believe pay transparency creates a better company culture, more than 20 percent believe it would motivate them to work harder and just over 11 percent want to compare their salary to their CEO’s salary.

Employees might want to know coworkers and CEOs salary’s but that doesn’t mean they’re ready to discuss it. Most employees are more comfortable talking about their work performance, career trajectory, or even their happiness or discontent than they are talking about their salaries.

Should Employers Start the Conversation?

More than half of employees don’t plan on asking for a raise or additional benefits at the end of the year, which is especially interesting since almost 30 percent plan to get a new job because they’re dissatisfied with salary and compensation. It might be advantageous for employers to start the conversation and ask employees how they feel about their compensation. If a minimal raise could improve job satisfaction and avoid costly turnovers, it might be worth it.

“Today’s workforce demands pay transparency because they believe it will motivate employees to work harder, create a better company and ultimately solve pay gap disparities among age, gender and race. We must do better to ensure that we’re creating and sustaining a vibrant, motivated and diverse workforce,” says beqom CEO Fabio Ronga.

More on Office Culture, Pay Transparency and the Gender Pay Gap

How to Improve Gender Diversity in the Workplace

Building Office Culture with Diversity and Inclusion

2 Simple Strategies to Improve Office Culture

Top 10 Workplace Etiquette Rules for Communication

5 Must-Have Benefits for Millennial Employees

2 Top Tips for Increasing Employee Productivity

10 Easy Ways to Improve Your Office Culture

Are Employees Who Work From Home Happier?

Are Employees Who Work From Home Happier?

by | Oct 23, 2018 | Blog

Are employees who work from home happier? Remote workers might have slightly higher job satisfaction, but their office-only counterparts are convinced those who work from home are far happier than they are.

Employees who work remotely or split time between home and the office are happier than their office-only counterparts, according to recent research by Porch. When it comes to matters like pay, growth opportunities and overall job satisfaction, remote and split-workers are more satisfied than those who work exclusively in the office.

Surprisingly, just a few percentage points separate remote, split and office-only workers when it comes to satisfaction with work-life balance, relationships with co-workers and family life. This runs counter to popular thought, like the notion that better relationships are developed with coworkers in-office or that split-workers have a significantly better work-life balance.

Office workers’ perceptions of remote employees are particularly interesting. Nearly 80 percent of office workers think that remote employees are happier than them. Office workers are split on whether remote employees are less, the same or more driven, hardworking and productive. Most employees agreed remote workers were as necessary or more necessary than office workers.

So, what’s so great about working from home? The top two perks of remote work, by a long shot, are having no commute and a more flexible schedule. Other perks include staying home with kids or pets, less supervision, fewer interruptions, better focus and no workplace drama. More than 60 percent of remote workers complete personal tasks on the clock. Nearly 80 percent of them have watched TV when working from home. Distractions aside, employees who work from home actually feel more productive than office-only employees.

There are some perks to working in the office that might be the reason why almost half of remote workers plan on going back to an office environment. More than half of those who work from home feel lonely during the day. Close to 40 percent of them miss being around other people. They also miss office camaraderie, free coffee and office parties or social events.

Split-workers seem to have the best of both worlds. They get to enjoy the camaraderie and free coffee that come with office work and the flexibility that comes with remote work. It might explain why split-workers feel more valued by their employers and are less likely to feel disconnected from coworkers.

Employee Benefits Success is All About Communication

Employee Benefits Success is All About Communication

by | Oct 16, 2018 | Blog

Employee benefits success is all about communication. A third of compensation costs go towards employee benefits and some employees would forgo a raise for better work-life balance or better healthcare benefits, but almost half of employees don’t even understand the benefits their employer already offers.

Benefits account for more than 30 percent of total employee compensation, but that doesn’t mean employees use them. Nearly half don’t understand all the benefits their organization offers, according to a report from Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI).

Even though they don’t have a good grasp on their current benefits, more than 40 percent of employees would forgo a raise in favor of work-life balance benefits and almost 20 percent would accept lower pay for better healthcare coverage.

More than 80 percent of employees have paid vacation time and over 70 percent have paid sick leave. Less than half of organizations offer paid maternity leave and only a quarter offer paid paternity leave. Recently large organizations have overhauled their benefits for parents, like Pinterest, whose benefits now include four months off for mothers or fathers, one-on-one classes with a parenting coach and online classes if children have learning or developmental disabilities. In the next few years, organizations offering maternity leave are likely to increase and there’s a chance companies that offer paternity leave might see a significant spike too.

Benefits that were nonexistent in 2013 (at least in terms of EBRI’s report) like health savings accounts and accident insurance are now offered by more than 15 percent of organizations. Student loan assistance is a trend EBRI started measuring this year and almost 15 percent of employees said their employer provides student loan debt relief/repayment assistance. The IRS recently ruled that a company could contribute to an employee’s 401(k) based on student loan payments, so employees can pay down their student loan debt and save for retirement at the same time with employer contributions. Employers are also helping employees continue their education as more companies partner with institutions to offer employees free college tuition.

Most employees predict weakening benefits offerings in the next three years, but everything I’ve seen in benefits trends this year points to stronger benefits offerings on the horizon. However, recently companies like Walgreens have started to slash benefits in order to raise overall wages. It’s a concerning trend to keep an eye on in the years to come.

Financial Support Limits Retirement Readiness for Parents

Financial Support Limits Retirement Readiness for Parents

by | Oct 9, 2018 | Blog

Financial support for adult children limits retirement readiness for parents. The latest study from Merrill Lynch reveals that parents are sacrificing their own financial security in retirement to support children whose financial independence has been delayed.

Most parents provide financial support to adult children ages 18 to 34, according to recent research from Merrill Lynch. Incredibly, each year parents spend twice as much supporting their adult children than they do contributing to their own retirement ($500 billion spent on adult children, $250 billion in contributions to retirement accounts).

“In this new era of delayed financial independence of young people, financial planning is becoming an ongoing family project with longer and different economic interdependencies than we’ve seen before,” says Ken Dychtwald, Ph.D., CEO and founder of Age Wave.

There are 173 million parents in the U.S. and 76 million have children under the age of 18. The average cost of raising a child today to age 18 is estimated to be more than $230,000. Most new parents are surprised by how much money they spend paying for childcare and other expenses like diapers and dental work. More than 60 percent of parents encounter financial difficulties associated with parenting.

Financial Support Limits Retirement Readiness for Parents

Financial support doesn’t end when a child turns 18. A third of early adults ages 18 to 34 still live with their parents. More than 70 percent of parents say they have put their children’s interests ahead of their own need to save for retirement. Over 80 percent are willing to make a major financial sacrifice for adult children.

“While it’s tempting to help your kids get a good start, early adulthood expenses can be big-ticket items, like cars, rent and grad school tuition. If you can afford to help out, that’s great, but be clear on your intent, set clear boundaries and don’t imperil your own finances,” says Stacy Allred, managing director and head of the Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Center for Family Wealth. “Remember that one of the greatest gifts you can give your kids is financial independence and security.”

When it comes to educating children about personal finances parents are better at teaching them how to pay off debt than they are at teaching them to invest early and benefit from compounding interest. More than 70 percent of parents wish they had help teaching their children about investing. A whopping 90 percent of parents would like personal finances to be taught to children in school.

It’s difficult to educate children on personal finances when most parents experience significant financial stress themselves. Employer-sponsored financial wellness programs can make a real difference by helping parents better manage their own money so they can teach their children to do the same.

More On Retirement Readiness and Financial Stress

Baby Boomer Retirement Statistics and Financial Stress

Retirement Concerns Aren’t Boosting Contributions

How to Help Employees Save More for Retirement

Retirement Concerns: Is Financial Literacy the Solution?

Financial Support Limits Retirement Readiness for Parents

Retirement Research Will Blow Your Mind

Financial Wellness Is About More Than Just Retirement Planning Advice

It’s Easy to Help Your Employees with Retirement Planning

What Percentage of Americans Spend More Than They Earn?

What Percentage of Americans Spend More Than They Earn?

by | Oct 3, 2018 | Blog

What percentage of Americans spend more than they earn? Recent research looks at spending habits, debt, retirement security and how close or far Americans are from achieving financial wellness.

More than half of Americans spend more than they earn, according to recent joint research by the Association of Young Americans (AYA) and AARP.

Almost 50 percent have credit card debt, more than 40 percent have a mortgage or a car loan and over 30 percent have student loan debt. Close to half of them have nothing saved for retirement. The 70 percent of Americans that consider their level of debt to be problematic are right to be worried.

“As we look into the future, financial and retirement security is going to be a concern for all of us,” says AARP Senior Vice President Jean Setzfand.

The most striking finding from AARP’s report is that there isn’t as much variance on financial security by generation as is commonly thought. In particular, student loan debt has similarly affected each generation’s ability to save for retirement and life decisions, not just Millennials. Student loan debt has kept roughly 30 percent of Millennials, Gen Xers and Baby Boomers from buying a car or house. It’s kept 40 percent of Millennials and Gen Xers and 30 percent of Baby Boomers from savings for retirement. Student loan debt has kept 25 percent of Millennials and 20 percent of Gen Xers and Baby Boomers from moving from their current residence. Student loan debt is making it harder to achieve the American dream across generations.

Survey results also showed that Americans are willing to learn. Over a third sought advice from a professional financial advisor and close to 80 percent believed such advice would be very or somewhat trustworthy. This is encouraging for employers who offer or are considering offering financial wellness programs. Employees who engage with financial wellness benefits are likely to trust the program, and ideally, apply the advice from it to improve their financial situations.

“Across generations, economic concerns and financial security are a top priority for Americans,” says Ben Brown, founder of AYA.  “These findings clearly indicate that all three generations care deeply about programs that ensure long-term financial success for individuals, families, and our nation as a whole.”