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3 Ways to Improve Your Employee Retirement Benefits

3 Ways to Improve Your Employee Retirement Benefits

by | Jan 31, 2023 | Blog

3 ways to improve your employee retirement benefits. Retirement benefits are a vital tool for your workforce. Here are three key ways to support your team with better retirement options. 

Almost 4 in 10 employees say they’re not confident about reaching their retirement goals, according to a 2022 Bank of America report, and even more are unsure if they have enough savings to retire. 

When it comes to retirement benefits, employees are looking for more than just a 401(k) — they want comprehensive guidance on how to prepare for the future. Here are 3 ways to help all employees get prepared for life during retirement.

1. Supplement retirement benefits with a digital financial wellness program that offers the latest technology.

Today, most employees prefer to manage their finances using digital apps and technology (including banking and investing), according to Bank of America’s 2022 report. And since employees are generally comfortable with using technology to manage their finances, consider delivering financial resources the same way. Similar to digital banking and investing tools, digital financial wellness programs offer a streamlined dashboard that help employees track their financial goals and debts. 

Many digital financial wellness programs offer easy-to-use tools and resources for users to engage with on their own free time, like nest egg calculators, personalized savings plans and other retirement ready resources. Moreover, employees can learn how to manage competing financial goals like tackling credit card debt, while saving for retirement.

2. Educate employees Social Security, Medicare and other retirement benefits.

While Social Security and Medicare are designed to help aging and retired populations, unfortunately, many of these benefits get left on the table due to lack of knowledge. About half of employees say they aren’t getting enough education about Social Security and Medicare benefits. Without knowing the importance of these benefits, employees are less likely to seek them out.

For ideas on how to educate employees on their benefits, consider using targeted email marketing or hosting financial planning workshops (food and refreshments are always a good incentive). 

With the right education on their benefits, employees can appropriately plan for the future and its associated costs, like supplemental health care, for example. One in 3 medical costs in retirement are not covered by Medicare. By understanding what’s covered in Medicare’s policy and what’s not, employees and pre-retirees can make the appropriate adjustments for retirement preparedness.

3. Invest in 1:1 financial consulting.

In addition to a retirement account, employees are looking for financial advice on how to best prepare for retirement. About 60% of employees said they feel stressed while managing their retirement savings, according to a Goldman Sachs report. With a financial advisor, employees can develop a comprehensive retirement plan with less stress and in less time. 

All employees are in different stages of retirement preparedness and security. Some may be at the beginning stages and need help simply choosing between a Roth IRA or 401(k). Others may have thousands already saved for retirement and need help shifting from saving to using retirement funds. 

No matter one’s age or stage of retirement preparation, most people can benefit from money coaching and guidance. And rather than giving cookie-cutter advice, the best advisors will give employees personalized counsel that empowers them to make well-informed financial decisions.

Looking for a digital financial wellness program to bolster your retirement benefits? Try Best Money Moves!

Best Money Moves is a mobile-first financial wellness solution designed to help dial down employees’ most top-of-mind financial stresses. As a comprehensive financial well-being solution, Best Money Moves offers 1:1 money coaching, budgeting tools and other resources to improve employee financial wellbeing. Our AI platform, with a human-centered design, is easy to use and fit for employees of any age. 

Whether it be retirement planning or securing a mortgage, Best Money Moves can guide employees through the most difficult financial times and topics. Our dedicated resources, partner offerings and 700+ article library make Best Money Moves a leading benefit in bettering employee financial wellness.  

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.

Coronavirus: Early Retirement Withdrawals and Savings by Generation

Coronavirus: Early Retirement Withdrawals and Savings by Generation

by | May 27, 2020 | Blog

Coronavirus: early retirement withdrawals and savings by generation. New research examines how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted retirement planning.

Initially, the coronavirus pandemic highlighted how unprepared people were for a financial disaster, putting a spotlight on the lack of emergency savings and an overreliance on credit cards. New research shows COVID-19 has also had a significant impact on long-term financial planning. 

The majority of workers (52 percent) now expect to work past age 65 or don’t plan to retire at all, according to a new study by the Transamerica Center for Retirement Readiness. In light of the coronavirus pandemic, 23 percent of workers say their confidence in their ability to retire comfortably has declined. 

“The long-term implications of the coronavirus pandemic and recession on retirement security have yet to be fully realized,” said Catherine Collinson, CEO and president of Transamerica Institute® and TCRS. “However, the financial vulnerabilities among workers across all generations are becoming clear.”

Coronavirus: Early Retirement Withdrawals and Savings by Generation

Millennials Retirement Withdrawals, Savings and Financial Stress

  • 22 percent of Millennials have already taken out a loan and/or early withdrawal.
  • 20 percent plan to take out a loan and/or early withdrawal.
  • Millennials have an estimated median of $23,000 saved for retirement.
  • 26 percent of Millennials have student loan debt.
  • Millennials have saved an estimated median of $3,000 for emergencies.

Generation X Retirement Withdrawals, Savings and Financial Stress

  • 15 percent of Gen Xers have already taken or plan to take out a loan and/or early withdrawal.
  • Gen Xers have an estimated median of $64,000 saved for retirement.
  • 52 percent of Gen Xers have credit card debt.
  • Gen Xers have saved an estimated median of $5,000 for emergencies.

Baby Boomers Retirement Withdrawals, Savings and Financial Stress

  • 10 percent of Baby Boomers have already taken or plan to take out a loan and/or early withdrawal.
  • Baby Boomers have an estimated $144,000 saved for retirement.
  • 25 percent of Baby Boomers are debt-free.
  • Baby Boomers have saved an estimated $15,000 for emergencies.

“Although our research paints a sobering picture, it also surfaces some opportunities that can help mitigate the negative economic effects of the pandemic and improve retirement prospects,” Collinson said.

Providing financial wellness benefits, offering flexible work arrangements and on a larger scale, collaborative efforts with policymakers and industry leaders can increase awareness of relief programs like unemployment insurance and alert employees to potential alternatives to making early withdrawals from retirement accounts.

“Workers’ ability to achieve a secure retirement highly depends on a robust employment market, the availability of retirement, health, and welfare benefits, the preservation of safety nets such as Social Security and Medicare,” Collinson said. “Even amid the pandemic and current hardships, we are presented with an opportunity to come together to reimagine our world — including how we live, work, retire, and age with dignity.”

More on Topics Related to Retirement Planning, Financial Stress and Financial Wellness

How to Help Employees Save More for Retirement

5 Retirement Challenges for Older Employees

Retirement Concerns Aren’t Boosting Contributions

Financial Support Limits Retirement Readiness for Parents

Baby Boomer Retirement Statistics and Financial Stress

5 Retirement Challenges for Older Employees

5 Retirement Challenges for Older Employees

by | Oct 23, 2019 | Blog

5 retirement challenges for older employees. New research highlights housing inequality on top of other barriers to retirement readiness.

A recent survey by Transamerica found nearly 70 percent of Baby Boomers expect to work past age 65 or don’t plan to retire at all. More than 80 percent of them say their decision to stay in the workforce is financially motivated. 

Older employees are facing considerable financial challenges as they approach retirement. Homeownership rates are lower and debt rates are higher for older workers aged 50 to 64, as compared to earlier generations, according to research by the Joint Center for Housing Studies (JCHS). 

“The falloff in homeownership rates among those approaching retirement, and the elevated levels of mortgage debt among those who do own, is concerning,” says Chris Herbert, Managing Director of the Joint Center for Housing Studies. 

The dip in homeownership rates and the spike in mortgage debt is just the tip of the iceberg sinking older employees’ timelines for retirement. Older workers are paying off credit cards and student loans, providing financial support for grown children, becoming caretakers for aging relatives and struggling to save for emergencies, let alone retirement.

5 Retirement Challenges for Older Employees

Click through the slideshow below for some fast stats on five of the biggest retirement challenges older employees are facing on top of housing inequality:

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How Employers Can Help Older Employees Get Ready for Retirement

More than 60 percent of Baby Boomers feel like they don’t know as much about retirement investing as they should and almost as many of them (55 percent) would like more education and advice from their employers on how to reach their retirement goals.

Financial wellness programs, like Best Money Moves, give employees personalized tools to help them better manage their money, pay off their debts, build their savings and plan for retirement. Best Money Moves provides practical, unbiased help to make it easier for employees to solve financial problems quickly and easily. And, for employers, less financially-stressed employees translates into a happier, healthier and more productive workforce.

More On Retirement Planning 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

Financial Wellness Is About More Than Just Retirement Planning Advice

Financial Wellness Is About More Than Just Retirement Planning Advice

by | Feb 5, 2018 | Blog

Financial wellness has become table stakes for employers. But while many employers believe they’ve ticked the financial wellness box by providing employees with a 401(k) and retirement planning advice, that’s only a tiny piece of the help employees need.

That’s not to say comprehensive retirement planning isn’t vital to your employees’ overall financial wellness. It is. But if your employees are typical, they likely struggle with paying down debt, significant medical expenses or other financial hardships, which means they may not always have the option to set aside funds for retirement. Their financial stress goes beyond wondering whether they have, or they can, save enough for retirement.

What percentage of employees struggle with other causes of financial stress? Plenty. Forty-nine percent of employees say that if their workplace benefits included financial planning programs in addition to existing retirement savings assistance, their productivity in the workplace would significantly increase, according to the 2017 Retirement Confidence Survey conducted by the Employee Benefits Research Institute.

In addition to allowing auto-deductions for retirement savings, best practice financial wellness programs offer a wide range of preventative and curative options for your employees’ financial stress, with both long and short-term solutions for tackling tough financial issues such as debt, elder care, identity theft and more.

Other studies have concluded that financially secure employees are more motivated and focused at work. In order to help your team reach this level of financial wellness, consider providing a financial wellness program that offers a broad range of services, including:

  1. An easy-to-use budgeting system
    There’s nothing like seeing whether you’re cash-flow positive (or not). Seeing a clear view of your income and expenses along with an evaluation of your spending habits helps employees take a long hard look at the choices they’re making today and how they can make different choices going forward. Simple, yet effective tools that help employees identify the root causes of their financial stress can help eliminate financial insecurity and increase overall financial wellness.
  2. Resources for managing debt
    More than half of the workforce is financially stressed, according to a PwC study on financial wellness. And, among millennial employees that number rises to 64 percent. Debt is a big driver of financial insecurity and figuring how to pay down or manage debt can be incredibly tricky, especially if employees have multiple types of debt, with more than one creditor. When choosing a financial wellness platform, pick one that assists employees with calculating the total sum of what they owe while also tracking interest rates and repayment habits. Understanding what is owed helps employees recognize how much their existing debt will cost them in the long run and what their best options are for consolidation and repayment.
  3. Help to set savings goals
    You can’t reach a goal if you don’t set one. Financial wellness programs should allow employees to set individualized goals, based on personal circumstances regarding income, lifestyle, basic expenses, individual interests and family size. A qualified financial wellness program should offer assistance with assigning realistic time frames to accomplish each financial goal. The ability to visually track personalized savings timelines encourages commitment to the savings plan and ongoing smart spending habits.
  4. Comprehensive, personalized answers to individual concerns or questions
    Financial wellness isn’t just about creating a tight budget, or just about reducing debt. Financial wellness is integrated with all areas of life. Whether directly associated with financial planning or not, financial wellness deeply impacts an employee’s sense of overall well-being. All of life’s big decisions and events carry lasting effects on an employee’s bank account and overall financial wellness. Ensure that you provide a comprehensive financial wellness provider that can address – and resolve – your employee’s individual financial stressors.

Your employees are most likely experiencing financial stress. While retirement planning benefits are important, they don’t come close to capturing the full needs of your workforce. Provide your employees with access to a financial wellness platform that addresses their own financial stressors, not someone else’s.

Don’t forget: when your workforce is less financially-stressed and more financially-stable, it’s better for everyone.