COVID has caused huge changes for employers and employees alike. That’s why Morgan Stanley at Work conducted a first-of-its-kind financial benefits study, called The State of the Workplace. The study, which compiled responses from 1,000 employed U.S. adults and 600 HR executives, attempts to chart how COVID-19 has impacted workplace experience. 

Among the many insights offered from the survey, one theme presented itself again and again: Employees’ financial stability took a hit during the pandemic and it’s time for employers to step in and help.

These are the top three reasons why your team needs financial wellness in the workplace.

1. The pandemic hurt employee financial security across all industries and positions.

Ninety-one percent of employees surveyed in Morgan Stanley’s report have faced personal finance challenges, such as household budgeting, debt reduction and emergency and short-term financial savings. This led to reduced financial contributions across 401(k) savings accounts, long-term and emergency short-term savings, and debt and loan payments.

Both employees and employers noticed a decrease in work productivity and performance due to this personal financial stress. Sixty-four percent of employees report that these stressors negatively impacted their work and personal life, while 82% of employers are concerned that personal financial issues affect work productivity.

Employers now have an increased responsibility to help their staff maximize their financial benefits; after all, if employees aren’t constantly worried about meeting their financial obligations, they can be more focused and productive at work.

2. When it comes to evaluating employer benefits, employees are focused on financial wellness.

With uncertainty fueled by the pandemic, employees are starting to reassess whether their current employer financial benefits meet their needs. Morgan Stanley noted that 61% of employees are paying more attention to what benefits they are offered. This percentage increases to 69% among Millennial employees, who are more focused on reviewing these benefits compared to the overall employee population.

Both employees and employers are looking for financial guidance. More than 4 in 5 employees believe that employers should be involved in helping employees understand how to maximize their financial benefits, while 95% of HR executives say that re-evaluating their companies’ 2022 benefits package is a moderate to high priority.

3. Employee financial wellness plays an important role in attrition and retention.

Meanwhile, employers acknowledge that re-evaluating the benefit plans offered is a top priority to stay competitive and retain talent

If your employees feel their financial needs are supported with a comprehensive benefits plan, they are also more likely to be productive on the job and stay at their company long-term. Ensuring that companies have the proper financial support for their employees will lead to retention of top talent. Ninety-one percent of employees say they would feel more invested in staying with their current employer if they have financial benefits that fulfill their needs. 

Employee retention is especially important if employers want to remain competitive. The State of the Workplace report indicates that 79% of HR executives believe that lack of financial benefits will result in attrition.

Need a first-in-class financial wellness solution? Consider Best Money Moves.

Financial wellness programs, like Best Money Moves, can help employees regain control of their finances. Best Money Moves has tools and features that help employees measure their financial stress, budget for monthly expenses, pay down debt and plan for emergencies. Employees can talk to trained professional financial counselors and educate themselves about everything from investing to co-signing loans to buying their first homes with access to a library of over 700 articles, videos and calculators.

Employers want a financial wellness program that is expansive, engaging and suited to meet each of their employee’s unique needs and they’ve found it in Best Money Moves

To learn more about Best Money Moves Financial Wellness Platform, let’s schedule a call. Contact us and we’ll reach out to you soon.

The Omicron variant of COVID-19 is leading to more shutdowns, changes to return-to-office plans and greater all around stress for your employees.

Research from the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) indicates nearly a quarter of organizations are  fairly or very concerned about Omicron. The same percentage of workers expressed concern about the variant causing a reduction in their hours.

How can you help employees deal with mounting financial stress as Omicron extends the pandemic? One way is to lean on financial wellness tools and programs, like Best Money Moves.

Employee financial stress is on the rise as the pandemic drags on.

The potential for a loss of work and an overall slowing of the economic recovery from the pandemic may be putting a financial strain on your workers, especially because the number of people struggling to pay their bills was already increasing before Omicron began spreading in the U.S. 

The U.S. Census’ Household Pulse Survey found that about 18% of people indicated more than one financial difficulty in September and October 2021, a month prior to the first detected case of Omicron.

Many people have been struggling to catch up on unpaid bills and mortgage payments as government interventions, like stimulus checks and enhanced unemployment insurance, went away. Some also began going back to the doctor’s and have had to deal with increased medical bills in recent months, while others faced difficulties with childcare costs as their offices returned to work. 

Providing budgeting tools, credit check-ins and resources on debt management can reduce stress and, in turn, improve productivity at work.

Another area financial wellness programs can help with is emergency savings preparedness. In a 2021 survey from SSRS Omnibus, 25% of respondents indicated having no emergency savings at all, an increase from 21% the year prior. An additional 26% said they have some emergency savings, but not enough to cover their expenses for three months. Resources that show employees how to create robust savings can make it easier to survive crises — like the new variant — with less financial strain

Employee financial wellness is more important now than ever before.

Offering financial wellness benefits to employees has also become more common during the pandemic. Another recent SHRM survey found that 26% of HR professionals said their organization added benefits or expanded existing benefits to help employees manage their financial stress since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Organizations that already offered the benefits said they had been used more since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly financial planning and coaching.

Financial wellness programs are desired by most employees — 87% want help when it comes to personal finance, PwC found — and they are proven to work. Less stress improves overall health, lowers healthcare costs and reduces the risk of employee burnout and resignation. 

Plus, they can improve the productivity of your workforce: 68% of workers in a Prudential survey said their financial wellness benefits allowed them to be more focused at work. Further, 8 in 10 said they were more likely to stay with an employer that demonstrated a commitment to helping them strengthen their financial resiliency.

Best Money Moves can help.

Best Money Moves uses artificial intelligence to power a mobile-first platform that measures employee financial stress, then dials it down with a unique content-mapping system that helps solve your employees’ pain points. The triggers and alerts system, as well as budgeting tools, personal finance resources and more, help guide employees to make smarter financial decisions and reduce their overall stress. 

To learn more about Best Money Moves Financial Wellness Platform, let’s schedule a call. Contact us and we’ll reach out to you soon.