Supporting employee financial wellbeing
Heidi Allan
Head of Financial Wellbeing
The past couple of years have been really tough on the nation’s wellbeing and with the cost of living crisis escalating, many people are really feeling the financial pinch. This is having a significant impact on employees and consequently employers.
Our third annual wellbeing report surveyed 10,000 UK employees and 500 organisations highlighting the synergies and disconnects between these groups. This report dissects the impacts of financial pressures on employees and spotlights areas where employers can add value and best support their workforce.
Our research highlights just how vulnerable many people’s financial health is:
- More than 1 in 5 would class themselves as vulnerable or in crisis with their everyday money management which is a significant increase on what we saw in 2021.
- More than half said they have struggled to cope with daily life over the last year, again another significant increase on what we saw last year.
With 3 in 4 having little or no emergency savings, any increases in their everyday spending or unexpected expenses can lead them into a downward borrowing cycle. There is a clear link between financial vulnerability, mental health concerns and negative behaviours. This in turn can impact workplace absence and productivity. Helping employees will not only improve the bottom line for organisations, it will also impact recruitment and retention and be seen as the supportive thing to do. Many organisations are now recognising the value these strategies can add to their employees and the business.
The report provides insight into many areas including everyday money management; happiness and employees’ biggest worries. The report includes the employer perspective and highlights business priorities and quantifies the scale of impact of poor employee wellbeing on an organisation.
The report shows around half of employees feel unsupported by their workplace. Financial health is lagging well behind the support offered for physical and mental health. We all know employee wellbeing effects productivity, absenteeism and retention - so what can employers do to help?
A well-rounded employee wellbeing strategy should be unique to your workforce and consider the physical, mental and financial wellbeing of individuals.
When was the last time you reviewed yours?
Are you happy with how you’re supporting employees or could you be doing more?
Over the last few years we have helped many companies to better understand the needs of their employees, provide financial education and support the development of financial wellbeing strategies which pay for themselves many times over.
We are truly enthusiastic about helping to improve the nation’s financial wellbeing and helping companies design, communicate and implement fantastic wellbeing offerings. We hope you enjoy the report and find the addition of insights and reaction from LCP experts to be of benefit and we look forward to discussing the findings with you.
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