Log in
Book a Demo

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

What Tops Financial Stress for Employees?

What Tops Financial Stress for Employees?

by | Dec 11, 2018 | Blog

What tops financial stress for employees? Retirement and student loan debt, among other financial issues, worry employees enough to inhibit productivity, but financial wellness programs can help them take control and regain focus at work.

John Hancock released their annual Financial Stress Survey this week and the findings are worrisome. An overwhelming majority (69%) of American employees experience financial stress. Over 70 percent of them worry about personal finances at work (costing employers up to $2,000 annually per employee in lost productivity).

High levels of financial stress manifest through physical symptoms like anxiety, lack of sleep and a feeling of being overwhelmed. Nearly 90 percent of workers feel there is a social stigma associated with not being financially well, which could motivate them to conceal symptoms of financial stress.

Employers might not notice when employees are highly stressed about finances if they hide it well, and finances aren’t a topic employees are comfortable bringing up with their supervisors. Surveys like these give insight into how employers can better help employees by targeting the issues that affect them most through effective financial wellness programs and benefits.

What Tops Financial Stress for Employees?

Close to 80 percent of employed Americans are concerned about retirement savings and student loan debt. More than 60 percent of workers are concerned with keeping up with basic expenses, like monthly rent payments. Others are stressed about their overall financial situation and a lack of emergency savings.

Most Americans think getting financial advice at work would reduce their stress and more than 60 percent believe it would help them start saving more for retirement. Employees think employers can help them most with financial issues like retirement income preparation and Social Security and Medicare claiming. Roughly 30 percent think employers can help them with debt counseling or buying a house.

Employers recognize today’s American employees experience high levels of financial stress and are looking for ways to improve health and wellness offerings in this vital area. New solutions, like the creation of HRAs, and the rise of student loan benefits help employees deal with specific financial issues and have the potential to be incredibly successful in their respective areas. Their specificity is also a drawback. Employees in poor health or without student debt won’t benefit from those solutions, but they’ve surely got their own unique financial stressors.

Expansive financial wellness programs that give employees the tools and support to improve the issues affecting their overall financial wellness, versus those that tackle singular financial issues, are likely to make the most difference. Employees are able to reduce their financial stress by using and applying knowledge from their financial wellness program and eventually, will start to reach their financial goals.

More on Financial Stress and Financial Wellness Programs

5 Must-Have Benefits for Millennial Employees

How Does Financial Wellness Affect Health?

5 Fast Financial Stress Statistics

Hiring Trends to Watch in 2020

What Is Financial Literacy and Why Is It Important?

4 Big Employee Benefit Trends for Family Planning

How Can Financial Wellness Be Improved?

Top 10 Employee Benefits for 2020

 

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.”

The Student Debt Crisis is Growing and Affecting Your Workforce. What Can You Do?

The Student Debt Crisis is Growing and Affecting Your Workforce. What Can You Do?

by | Jan 30, 2018 | Blog

In this week’s Best Money Moves roundup, we take a look at news stories and new research studies that may impact employee benefits and HR issues. We hope you find this news roundup helpful, and we’d love your feedback.

America has a student loan debt crisis. Employers are paying the price.

Over 44 million Americans are carrying a total of $1.48 trillion in student loans and chances are your employees (and possibly even you) are among those affected. Employees facing significant student loan debt are more likely to defer saving for retirement, buying a home, getting married and having children. (And they’re spending between 12 and 15 work hours each month fretting about their finances.)

They’re also more likely to seek out additional employment to cover their expenses. As a result, their concentration, productivity and overall physical health suffers – as does your company’s bottom line.

Meanwhile, the financial cost of higher education is only increasing with time, matriculating well-educated, inexperienced and deeply indebted graduates into the workforce.

Empowering your employees with financial know-how is the key to reducing financial stress, managing their student loan debt and creating financial wellness.  

Make no mistake: student debt affects your employees’ ability to plan for the future and build productive and meaningful relationships. For employers, providing access to financial wellness through financial literacy and financial planning benefits programs means you’ll be able to attract and hold on to talented employees.

The cost of a higher education shouldn’t cost your company a good work force and it shouldn’t hold your employees back from planning their future. Read this week’s story to learn about 10 things you need to know about your employee’s student loan debt.

Employee Student Loan Debt: 10 Things You Need To Know (Part I)

How does a dynamic team stay on the same page? Between remote workers, local employees, freelancers and executives, Quartz has found that “virtual coffee breaks,” annual summits and transparency through a 1,000+ page handbook keeps everyone in their company looped in to cultural norms and work processes.

Can transparent communication guidelines actually connect your team?

Are you trying to grow your female IT workforce? Women make up a smaller share of both the private and public IT workforce. Five female federal executives offer advice on how women can succeed in public sector IT, despite making up a smaller share of the labor pool. See how the tide is changing.

5 Tips to Stop Backslide of Women in Government Tech

Corporate tax savings have arrived! What are America’s largest corporations doing with their millions in slashed taxes and instant savings? Here is a list of S&P 500 companies that have announced bonuses, wage increases and other special investments for their employees based on their new lower tax rate.  

Tax savings allows greater investment in employees

It’s never too late to start a late-stage retirement plan. Don’t wake up in a cold panic anymore! Yes, you should have already begun your retirement savings plan – your retirement looms closer every single day. But if you haven’t started already, isn’t it too late? It’s not.

9 immediate steps to take today, to begin your retirement savings.

Cost is no longer the driving force when it comes to benefit platforms. What are the many factors taking priority over cost? Ease of use for benefits administrators and their employees as well as the ability to integrate new benefits technology with existing HR information systems – and that’s not all…

Employers are choosing user experience over cost.

Are you living in a Smart City? In March, the Smart Cities Council 2018 Readiness Challenge Grants will announce 5 winners from a list of 9 regional finalists. They’ll access workshops, products and services to bolster initiatives in infrastructure, open data platforms, Internet of Things (IoT), public Wi-Fi, sustainability and more.

What would you do with a Readiness Challenge Grant?

Is your city in one of the top six US office markets? 2017’s commercial property market experienced a lag in tenants, while office space availability has remained steady since 2016. Tenants at the end of 2017 occupied 21 million square feet more office space than they did at the beginning of the year.

How will economic diversity and population flow affect the office market for 2018?

Have something to add? Email info@bestmoneymoves.com.

Employee Student Loan Debt: 10 Things You Need To Know, Part Two

Employee Student Loan Debt: 10 Things You Need To Know, Part Two

by | Jan 30, 2018 | Blog

Employee student loan debt: 10 things you need to know, part two. The student loan debt crisis isn’t going away. This is what employers need to know about it.

This article is the second part of a series on 10 Things Employers Need to Know About Student Loan Debt. Catch up with Part One, here.

Americans owe a combined $1.4 trillion in student loan debt — and employers are starting to feel the burden of that enormous debt. The vast majority of employees are financially stressed, and they are less focused, less engaged and less productive than those without debt and are more likely to take one a second job or skip work due to a stress-related illness.

The student loan debt crisis isn’t going away, but there are ways you help your employees cope with their financial stress and get back to work. Here are 10 important things you need to know about student loan debt and the struggle your employees are facing in paying it back:

6. Student loan debt is not a millennials-only problem.

Younger employees aren’t the only ones dealing with the stress of student loan debt. In fact, 2.8 million Americans aged 60 and older carry outstanding student loans from their own college education. This number is up significantly from 2005, where only 700,000 Americans in this age group carried outstanding loans. Your older employees may be struggling to repay debt from continuing education or are possibly paying off debt from sending a child or grandchild to school.

7. Stress over student loan debt is keeping your employees from major life milestones.

Millennials graduating with student loans are more interested in paying off their loan debt than they are in homeownership, getting married or having children. A study by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York has found that having student loan debt decreases homeownership at every level of higher education. Indebted millennials also less likely to set aside money for retirement or build an emergency fund, creating further vulnerability, possible additional financial debt and significant stress into the future.

8. Stress over student loan debt is making your employees sick.

Over half of young workers with student loan debt worry about it constantly, according to American Student Assistance, a nonprofit specializing in helping consumers finance their higher education. Stressing about massive debt isn’t just an emotional strain, it can also cause significant physical ailments from occasional headaches or gastrointestinal problems, to more chronic conditions such as high blood pressure or depression and anxiety.

9. Most employees wish they had more information about repaying student loan debt, they just don’t know where to look.

Repayment options for student loan debt are often complicated and difficult for consumers to navigate on their own. With private loans, interest rates and monthly payments can change with little to no warning. Certain options, like consolidation or forgiveness, often requires knowledge of how to make negotiations with whoever holds the loan. Don’t let your employees feel overwhelmed by their debt – employers hold a unique ability to help their employees manage their student loan debt and help build their financial literacy.

10. Most employees want their employers to provide them with resources on student loan debt.

Employees already rely on their Human Resources departments for information on workplace safety, benefits and managing retirement plans. Increasingly, they are looking to their employer and HR team to provide debt counseling, financial tools and management options and overall financial wellness. By offering debt counseling and financial literacy services, you show your employees that you understand the financial challenges they face paying back student debt and are invested in their wellbeing. Your employees will not only feel happier to work for an employer who cares about their wellness; as their financial wellbeing grows and their student loan debt decreases, your employees will be healthier, more present, more productive, and ready stick with your company for the long term.

Financial literacy and financial planning are key to reducing financial stress, student loan debt and creating financial wellness. The first step, however, is knowing how to get there. For your employees, student loan debt affects their ability to plan for the future and build productive and meaningful relationships. For employers, it means being able to attract and hold on to talented employees. Consider who in your workforce might be affected by significant student loan debt. The cost of a higher education shouldn’t cost your company a good work force and it shouldn’t hold your employees back from planning their future.

To get the complete picture about student loan debt and your employees, be sure to read Part One of this article here.

More on Student Loan Debt and Financial Stress

Employee Student Loan Debt: 10 Things You Need To Know, Part One

Employee Student Loan Debt: 10 Things You Need To Know, Part Two

Student Debt Financial Stress Haunts Millennials and Older Workers, Too

What Tops Financial Stress for Employees?

The Student Debt Crisis is Growing and Affecting Your Workforce. What Can You Do?

Employee Student Loan Debt: 10 Things You Need To Know, Part One

Employee Student Loan Debt: 10 Things You Need To Know, Part One

by | Jan 29, 2018 | Blog

Employee student loan debt: 10 things you need to know, part one. What employers need to know about how student loan debt affects their employees.

The U.S. has a student loan debt crisis. And employers are paying the price.

Over 44 million Americans are carrying a total of $1.48 trillion in student loans. Forty percent of adults under 30 and 16 percent of adults overall live with outstanding student loan debt, according to the federal reserve’s 2017 Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking.

Chances are, your employees are among those affected. Employees facing significant student loan debt are more likely to defer saving for retirement, buying a home, getting married and having children. They’re also more likely to seek out a second full-time or part-time job to cover their expenses. As a result, their concentration, productivity and overall physical health suffers from the accumulated financial stress.

The financial cost of higher education is only increasing with time, matriculating well-educated, inexperienced and deeply indebted graduates into the workforce. In this two-part series, we offer you 10 things you should know about how student loan debt affects your employees:

1. Student loan debt is the second-biggest type of personal debt in the United States.

Student loans are one of the largest contributors to overall household debt among Americans, second only to mortgage debt. While the overwhelming majority of those loans are federally held, there has been an increase in borrowing from private lenders. Private student loans are ineligible for loan forgiveness programs or income-based repayment programs, complicating repayment plans and decisions on where (and how) to seek debt relief.

2. The amount of student loan debt Americans owe is getting worse with time.

In February of 2017, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York announced that student loan debt had grown for the 18th consecutive year and that the amount borrowed doubled in the last eight years, reaching a total more than $1.48 trillion owed. Not only are more students are taking loans for higher amounts but they are paying them back at a slower pace than in the past.

3. Student loan debt is affecting your workforce.

Sixty-eight percent of all new college graduates have student debt. Even if your employees don’t have significant amounts of student debt themselves (which is a relative assessment), they’re likely to have friends or relatives who do. Student loan repayment plans average at $351 per month and that number isn’t going down any time soon. It’s important to note that the average annual US salary for 24 to 35 year olds is $39,000. Student loan repayments are killing your employees’ financial wellness and are averaging nearly 10 percent of their income, replacing retirement contributions, mortgage payments and possibly even monthly health insurance costs.

4. The average debt per student has risen to nearly $30,000.

One fifth of graduated student loan recipients aged 25-39 take on extra employment in order to make payments on their student loan debt. Employees working a second job can mean lower productivity while at work and a difficulty in maintaining a reliable work schedule. Overworked employees are also more likely to experience fatigue and burnout from the added stress of juggling multiple jobs – as well as the stress from their student loan debt.

5. The average interest rate per student loan is approximately 5 percent, meaning your employees actually end up paying back significantly more than what they borrowed.

The interest rate paid by a loan recipient is dependent upon which type of loan and repayment plan that they have been given. For federal loans, the current amount for direct subsidized and unsubsidized (the type provided to undergraduates) loans is 4.45 percent. At the graduate level, the interest rate is 6 percent. For people 60 and over who take out loans to help younger relatives, the rate is 7 percent. Private student loans carry interest rates averaging 9 to 12 percent. Depending on the repayment or consolidation plans, these high interest rates can quickly inflate the initial amount of the loan and add tens of thousands of dollars to what an individual is trying to repay. And, interest and late fees are paid before any monthly payments are applied to the original loan amount.

And there’s even more you need to know. To learn more about student loan debt and your employees, be sure to read Part Two of this article here.

More on Student Loans and Financial Stress

Employee Student Loan Debt: 10 Things You Need To Know, Part One

Employee Student Loan Debt: 10 Things You Need To Know, Part Two

Student Debt Financial Stress Haunts Millennials and Older Workers, Too

What Tops Financial Stress for Employees?

The Student Debt Crisis is Growing and Affecting Your Workforce. What Can You Do?