As the economy continues to pose challenges for many employees, financial wellness during a recession is becoming an increasingly important concern. With rising costs of living and stagnant wages, many workers are struggling to make ends meet and are feeling the financial strain more than ever before. This situation is particularly critical for healthcare workers, who play a crucial role in society's well-being. Ensuring financial wellness for healthcare workers is essential to support their dedication and maintain the quality of healthcare services provided to the community.
Recognizing the importance of financial wellness for employee mental health, fortunately, there is a way for employers to help. By offering types of employee benefits that focus on financial education, planning, and assistance, employers can help the employee's wellbeing by alleviating the financial stress their employees are facing.
But financial wellness benefits aren't just good for employees – they're good for employers as well. By giving employees the tools to effectively manage their finances, employers can reduce burnout and absenteeism, increase productivity, and improve morale.
In this article, we'll explore the top four financial employee benefits that can help increase employee financial wellness, reduce burnout, increase employee happiness, and help you retain your valuable talent without raising salaries.
Table of Contents
The state of workplace burnout
A recent Gallup survey suggests 3 in 10 US workers feel burned out. Burnout was highest among Gen Z, with 84% reporting job-related emotional distress compared to 74% of Millennials. Burnout was also more prevalent in women than men, at 67% to 59%. Data from Deloitte and Workplace Intelligence found that 43% of employees reported feelings of exhaustion “always or often” while 42% suffer from stress. The cost? Financial burnout has led to $1.8 trillion in lost productivity in the U.S. alone. Other impacts include increased retention and hiring budgets to keep up with rising turnover and a drop in profits.
Why companies are introducing financial wellness benefits to combat burnout
With burnout on the rise, companies are increasingly willing to introduce new directives that better suit their workers’ needs. In doing so, employers should focus on resolving the causes of burnout rather than alleviating it on a case-by-case basis. According to federal data, 169M Americans live paycheck to paycheck and 67% don’t have enough savings to cover a $400 emergency expense. With this in mind, many employers are introducing financial benefits as a strategy to ease employees’ financial stress and in turn, increase presenteeism and productivity.
Financial benefits to help prevent burnout
Here are 4 financial employee benefits to increase employee financial wellness and reduce burnout:
Retirement planning
A recent Deloitte research report found that only 3 in 10 people feel very secure about their retirement, highlighting the pressing need for improving financial wellness for frontline workers and beyond. The fact that so many Americans are inadequately prepared for retirement is perhaps a driving reason why over 400,000 employees work two full-time jobs. Employers can alleviate retirement anxiety by offering workers a benefit that secures their long-term financial security.
Helping to ensure retirement readiness is not purely altruistic on employers’ part. A smart 401(k) investment strategy can help recruit and retain healthcare workers while trimming your company’s tax bill. Employer contributions to retirement plans are generally tax-deductible and may earn your business tax credit. Human Interest found that businesses that include retirement plans in their employee benefits package have a lower separation rate in 2021 compared to national average turnover rates.
Healthcare coverage
Historically, employees didn’t utilize their health benefits until they were sick, but Covid changed that. The pandemic prompted employees to access their benefits more often and ask more questions about their coverage.
In 2023, companies will need to offer more than just basic health coverage to support their workforce. Remember health and wellness is not a one-size-fits-all approach so offering customizable healthcare plans that focus on preventive care and health education is best. For employers, this may include: greater access to mental health benefits as well as promoting virtual providers. Additionally, considering benefits that cater to specific professions, such as the benefits nurses get or the benefits teachers get, can be highly attractive to healthcare workers and contribute to their overall job satisfaction.
Attractive health and well-being benefits can help your team members prevent or manage burnout with professional support.
Tuition assistance/ reimbursement
Currently, nearly 43M Americans owe more than $1.6T in student loans which works out to an average individual loan balance of more than $42K. It, therefore, comes as no surprise that in a competitive job market, student loan debt repayment has enormous appeal for potential candidates. An ASA survey reported that 86% of employees would commit to a company for 5 years if the employer helped pay back their loans, while 92 percent would take advantage of a match for student loan repayments similar to a 401(k) match. Until 2025, employers can offer up to $5,250 in educational reimbursement - tax-free!
While only a small number of companies currently offer tuition assistance, it’s a benefit on the rise and a great way to attract a younger workforce.
PTO cash advances with Sorbet
We’ve saved the best for last… Wondering how employers can help frontline workers living paycheck to paycheck? Help employees achieve greater financial wellness, reduce burnout and retain talent without raising salaries. Discover how to maximize employee benefits for a more well-rounded approach to supporting your workforce.
55% of PTO goes unused each year!
A 'one-size-fits-all' PTO policy doesn’t help employees who can’t afford or don’t want to take as many vacation days as they are entitled to. So instead, give employees the freedom to choose how they want to spend their PTO and empower them with the knowledge of how to use vacation days effectively to enhance their work-life balance.
Almost 70% of employees want the option to cash out their unused PTO.
What is a credit card cash advance?
Sorbet’s on-demand PTO advance solution allows employees to instantly access the cash value of their unused PTO. Instead of waiting until they leave the company, we advance the payout, so employees can unlock more compensation without dipping into their salary or disrupting the company’s cash flow. An average U.S. employee can instantly unlock around $3,000 of unusable PTO, giving them access to extra cash right when they need it.
Find out how Sorbet’s on-demand PTO cash advance solution has reduced employee financial stress by 65% and increased employee retention and overall job satisfaction by 36%.
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Schedule your introductory session now to discover all about credit card cash advance, how it can benefit you and how to apply for PTO cash advance.