In recent years, many companies have become more sophisticated when it comes to improving employee benefits. Rather than just providing a pension and Death in Service benefits, employees are increasingly offering their staff a range of perks, from gym memberships and retail discounts to private healthcare.
While many corporations have invested in measures to boost physical and emotional wellbeing, few have taken any steps to support their employees’ financial wellbeing.
Considering that the Close Brothers annual Financial Wellbeing Index found that almost nine out of ten employers (88%) believe staff worry about money – 86% to the extent it affects their performance at work – this is clearly a hugely important area when it comes to staff welfare.
With employees increasingly trusting their employers for advice and relying on them heavily to find good solutions for their finances – pensions, investments, mortgages etc. – providing simple, cost-effective ways of supporting financial wellbeing have never been more important.
UK employees score just 54/100 when it comes to financial wellbeing
Each year, the Close Brothers’ Employee Financial Wellbeing Index measures how financially fit employees in the UK feel in eight key categories. Each category is assigned a score out of 100, according to a scale developed by Close Brothers and an average of each category score delivers the overall index figure.
When it comes to their overall financial wellbeing, UK employees score just 53.6 out of 100.
Professor Sir Cary Cooper from Manchester Business School, a recognised world-leading expert on wellbeing in the workplace, says: “Although many businesses have made great strides to look after the mental wellbeing of their employees over the last decade, not as many employers have supported their financial wellbeing.”
Key findings of the research include:
- 94% of employees say they worry about money. Of this group, three quarters (77%) say that money worries impact them at work
- More than a quarter of employees (28%) are unhappy with the state of their finances
- More than half (55%) of employees say that their workplace offers nothing to improve employee financial wellbeing.
It’s clear that financial issues affect millions of workers, and that most businesses aren’t doing anything to support this. But why does it matter?
It’s important because the Close Brothers research found that businesses faced five key challenges associated with poor financial wellbeing:
- Reduced productivity (22%)
- Loss of talented staff (22%)
- Reduced employee engagement (19%)
- Higher absence rate (19%)
- Demands for salary rises (19%)
Businesses are being affected by a lack of productivity, from staff being distracted by money worries to sickness absence, as financial stress takes a physical or mental toll.
How a good mortgage broker can add value to your business
There are two key steps employers can take to improve the financial wellbeing of their staff which, in turn, supports engagement, productivity, and talent retention:
- Financial education to raise awareness and confidence, enabling employees to develop the tools they need to deal with the complexities of their financial lives
- Access to financial advice for those that need extra help.
We believe we can provide a low-cost solution to help support financial wellbeing in your workplace. Our team of experienced mortgage professionals can provide independent, bespoke advice to employees about their property, borrowing, and protection needs, and can also share knowledge.
For example, we can host a mortgage or protection seminar for your team. While it may not be possible to do this in your office right now, we can provide these seminars and workshops online, share our expertise, and help your employees to better understand their finances. They can also work extremely well as Q&A sessions where your team can ask us questions about their mortgage or financial needs.
We can also provide individual mortgage advice, giving your employees the peace of mind that they are getting expert advice, doing the right thing, and saving money. Again, we can do this remotely using video-conferencing software.
Importantly, this benefit is for all employees, no matter where they are in life’s journey – from first jobber to senior director. Whether looking to save a deposit, getting married, having kids and moving home, downsizing, or getting divorced – they need professional independent advice to navigate the UK market.
From your perspective, the other main advantage of this is that it’s easy to implement and fee-free for your employees. You don’t need to invest a significant sum in apps, perks, or professional fees – it doesn’t cost an employer anything to offer Altura as an employee benefit.
To find out how we can help you to support financial wellbeing in your workplace, please get in touch. Email [email protected] or call us on +44 (0) 20 3786 7270.
