5 Proven Steps To Achieve Financial Wellness For Employees

If put in simple terms, Financial wellness is the ability to get a healthy financial life. The prospect of financial wellness is immense. It is not only about fixing personal finance goals but financial health.

Financial health includes:

• personal savings plan

• budgeting

• retirement planning

• credits

• tax planning

• insurance coverage

While dealing with finances, the feeling of tension and apprehension is pervasive. Financial wellness is the key to deal with financial stress. It is a way to deal with the effective management of finances. Financial wellness also asserts your pathway to financial security.

An excellent financial plan will lead life to prosperity and progress.

Addressing the Impact of Financial Stress on Employees

The most common concern in today's modern world is financial stress. Financial wellness for employees will reduce turnover rates and raise employee satisfaction.

Employee financial wellness programs will improve productivity, employee mental health, teamwork, wellness, etc. It will also enhance the employer brand and lead to a healthier workplace.

Financial stress drastically affects employee wellbeing. Hence here are few stumbling blocks that you must know:

1. Worries and Distraction

Worries and distractions are serious threats. An individual in distress becomes preoccupied with unhealthy thoughts. It slows down intellectual wellness in the workplace.

Financial worries often route to distraction in work by lowering retention. Distractions lead to a shift in focus from work and result in lower productivity.

2. Health-related Issues

Financial stress can cause problems to mental as well as physical health. At the same time, poor physical health can also be a condition to financial stress.

So poor financial health manifests poor physical conditions like:

• mood disorders

• depression

• anxiety

• high blood pressure

• heart disease

• insomnia and etc

Such health conditions affect employee productivity.

3. Presenteeism and Absenteeism

Presenteeism refers to the ongoing physical or mental health conditions of an employee. It affects your workers results in decreased productivity.
In such cases, the individual can't give his best due to health-related or personal issues.

While absenteeism is habitual or intentional, it can include bullying, disengagement, illness, etc.
Increased absenteeism impacts the employee as well as the organization.

4. Distress

Getting into fights or being rude to fellow workers should be discouraged.

Employees under stress over finances may indulge in such activities. It will leave a negative impact on co-workers and the organization. Also, it will lead to a toxic work environment.

Also read: 86 All-in-one Financial Wellness Quotes

5 Financial Wellness Tips HR Can Implement For Employees

Healthy and happy employees show better results in the workplace. With the unprecedented outbreak of covid-19, things have taken a different turn. Financial wellness is a collective action.

According to Northwestern Mutual, covid-19 data also shows major financial stress. In the U.S over,

• 26 percent preyed on payment deferral options
• 19 percent of it pulled from their savings or emergency funds
• 13 percent of participants borrowed from a family member or friend

Here are few steps HR can initiate for its remote employees:

1. Understanding the Digital Financial Wellness

The holistic Financial approach starts with the digital engagement of the employees. Humans are becoming sophisticated in their demands for digital services. Financial technology has critical access and knowledge to a broad range of solutions.

Digital finance saves time and makes things easier for employees. It makes financial planning manageable. It creates awareness, motivates to protect and use better financial products.

The technology every time opens up new possibilities for improvement. It is a lot safer to use a digital finance platform for remote employees. The Finance team and HR can create infographics for employees on the benefits of it.

Also, guide the employees on Financial wellbeing to create further awareness.

Also Read: Leadership Skills In Today's Digital Age

2. Educating Employees on Financial Wellness

Knowledge of investment, management, and the ability to make sound financial decisions is vital. Financial education is also crucial to create a saving culture at the workplace.

Financial literacy is the understanding of credit and debt management.
Financial literacy helps you keep up with day-to-day and plan long-term financial decisions.

HR can organize webinars and educate the employees on financial wellness. Provide insightful ideas and solutions on how to manage finances. Also, encourage employees to adopt healthy financial practices in the future.

HRs can also organize a fundraiser campaign to create awareness along with a volunteer team to help. As an organization, this can be an opportunity to promote teamwork and ethics.

3. Keeping Up with the Latest Information for the Employees

HR can introduce financial wellness strategies and programs for the employees. Also, share all the latest information on how to improve mental health through podcasts, guides, etc.

It will help employees remain consistent during any time of crisis. The employer must make sure of the employees' wellbeing.

Also, sharing financial wellness ideas on an internal homepage can work wonders. This will help employees have access to all the latest information.

To make information more accessible, HR can utilize the best QR code generator app to create codes linking to digital resources, which can be placed on physical materials around the workplace.

4. Special Perks and Benefits for Remote Employees

Financial security is one of the topmost employee benefits that every HR must practice.

On average, an employee spends 20 hours a month worrying about finances.

Working from home, managing the house, childcare, and online meetings are stressful. And, constantly living in fear of meeting the family's short-term needs and performing better at work.

Thus, HR can introduce special perks and benefits packages for employees. It will help employees reduce financial stress and focus better on their work.

Also Read: 7 Noteworthy Fringe Benefits for your Workforce in 2024

5. Encourage Employees to Practice Sustainable Methods to Improve Financial Wellness

Here are few steps HR can encourage employees to take up:

• Saying no to outside food
• Spending more time on a book or family than online shopping
• Cancel subscription to OTT platforms and encourage gardening or cooking.
• Clearing all the bills at the end of the month
• Encourage walking or cycling instead of using cars or bikes
• Learning from YouTube DIY's, simple repairs, etc
• Drinking more water and homemade fruit juices. Cutting off soda and beverage consumptions.
• Study financial records weekly, which will help adapt the financial discipline

Bottom Line

Financial wellness for employees is very essential today. It helps an individual commit to financial learnings and uses wise financial practices. Finance is an important term that is being used in every sector now and then.

It is crucial to plan a wise future with immediate financial wellness goals.

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