Josh Watkins, Author at Best Money Moves

4 Reasons Employees Are Quitting Post-COVID-19

by Josh Watkins | Aug 31, 2021 | Blog

4 reasons employees are quitting post-COVID-19. The U.S. has seen unprecedented numbers of employees leaving their jobs after the pandemic. Here are 4 leading causes spurring employee turnover.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a period of incredible change, and it’s not over yet – an unprecedented number of employees are quitting their jobs.

At Quartz, Tim Fernholz writes that “the U.S. economy is currently experiencing the highest rate of workers quitting their jobs that we’ve seen in the last two decades.” A record 4 million people quit their jobs in April 2021 alone. Why?

Let’s unpack the leading causes, and list some steps you can take to stop your best talent from leaving.

1. Employees are feeling the need for higher compensation.

In 2018 and 2019, workers were already quitting jobs at record rates. Job satisfaction was also already low, especially among low-wage earners. These trends are motivated largely by compensation and benefits.

But the problem of compensation can be traced further back, before even the 2008 financial crisis. Real wages in the United States have stagnated since the late 1970s. In the meantime, while consumer good prices – things like televisions or new sedans – trend low, costs associated with food, healthcare, childcare, and housing have skyrocketed.

This problem has only been exacerbated by COVID-19. In the pandemic’s chaos, many people have assumed greater financial burdens, struggling with expenses related to child care, healthcare, debts, and ill family members. Many employees now look in toward the future, anxious about contingency costs, or inevitables like long-term care and retirement.

This point may be the simplest and most effective: pay your employees competitive earnings and benefits to keep them feeling stable and supported, even in times of uncertainty.

2. Employees have grown accustomed to the flexibility available throughout the pandemic.

A Harvard Business School survey shows over 80% of workers who worked from home during the shutdown “either don’t want to go back or prefer a hybrid schedule.” While many startups and offices already sprinkled “work from home” days as an enticement or luxury, remote work is now the preference for many employees.

Material conditions motivate this demand for flexible scheduling. Many workers who are quitting are women, seeking jobs with more compensation and scheduling-autonomy for childcare needs. More time at home has re-taught many to value work-life balance.

If your employees have been fulfilling their work demands even while remote, consider extending flexibility beyond the pandemic. Talk to your staff and aim to negotiate reasonable hybrid-work schedules based on employee needs.

3. Post-COVID-19, employees are upskilling and ready for change.

Many Americans who’ve quit (or remained on unemployment) are “upskilling,” or pursuing educational programs, such as online certificates or part/full-time college enrollment, with eyes toward new sectors of the economy.

4. Americans are dealing with long-term burnout from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Though most people have gradually “gotten used to” a COVID world, people remain burnt-out, fatigued. As vaccination rates increase, workers will find they want to change careers, work less, or perhaps just take the time to process the trauma of recent history.

Employees’ access to mental health benefits should be kept strong. Again, allowing for remote flexibility and occasional paid time-off makes a staff feel supported.

Ultimately, it’ll take years of data to understand COVID-19’s impact on the labor market and the lives of those in it. Some jobs are essentially gone for good. For now, employers and HR managers would do well to accommodate their employee’s shifting needs in the wake of a long public health crisis.

If you want to learn more about how Best Money Moves can bring financial wellness to your company, download our whitepapers.

Want to Reduce Your Employee Healthcare Costs? Start by Reducing Employee Financial Stress

by Josh Watkins | Jul 19, 2018 | Blog

Smart employers know that being proactive about the flu season can aid the bottom line by keeping employees healthier and reducing sick days. But they may not realize that becoming proactive about employee financial stress can also boost productivity and profitability.

“The latest studies show that when you’re stressed you get sick. And, when you get stressed about money, you can get really sick,” notes Best Money Moves Founder and CEO Ilyce Glink.

A Propeller Insights study of more than 1,000 U.S. adults found that 30 percent reported feeling “constant stress” about money, while 85 percent were “sometimes stressed.”

The American Psychological Association reported similar results in its latest “Stress In America” report. About one-third of respondents fear unexpected expenses. Thirty-percent experience stress when thinking about saving for retirement, while 25 percent find the ability to pay for life’s essentials stressful.

“The impact of financial stress is pervasive, negatively affecting not only the employee’s financial well-being, but also their physical well-being, engagement, productivity, absenteeism and even loyalty,” PwC wrote in a special 2017 report on stress and the bottom line. “All of these factors can come at a considerable cost to the employer.” For a company with 10,000 workers, the productivity cost of such distractions is estimated at $3.3 million per year.

It is well known that stress harms people via negative reactions on the body, mood and performance. Issues can be as short-term like a headache or more involved, such as sustained drug and/or alcohol use.

The APA reported more deeply on how stress affects each body system:

Musculoskeletal. Muscles tense up as almost a reflex reaction to stress. Chronic stress can possibly trigger other reactions such as a migraine.
Respiratory. Stress can make a person breathe harder, possibly leading to asthma or panic attacks.
Cardiovascular. Stress can cause an increase in heart rate and stronger contractions of the heart muscle. Eventually blood pressure can rise and, in serious cases, this can lead to an increased risk of hypertension, heart attack or stroke.
Endocrine. When the body is stressed, so-called stress hormones can affect the adrenal glands, cause the liver to produce more glucose, a potential issue for those vulnerable to Type 2 diabetes.
Gastrointestinal. Stressed individuals may eat more or less than normal. Stomach aches become more likely and chronic stress could lead to the development of ulcers.
Reproductive. In men, chronic stress can affect testosterone production and sperm production and maturation. For women, stress can affect menstruation, fuel PMS or cause fluctuating hormones.

Employers have long offered on-site gyms or discounted membership to help reduce stress. Others have enhanced employee benefits with boosted vacation time and emphasized work-life balance.

But more are offering financial wellness platforms that go beyond helping plan for retirement.

PwC suggests that employers look to “change both money attitudes and everyday behaviors that have lasting effects.” When this mantra becomes part of company culture, employees see their peers facing similar challenges and benefiting from a company support system that, according to PwC’s study, helps get spending under control, pay off debt, save more for major goals, better plan for retirement and/or better manage healthcare expenses.

This post was written by guest author, Chris Hardesty, who is a financial writer.