The Pandemic: The Biggest ‘I Told You So’ For Financial Wellness

Monday, October 05, 2020

Nearly 14% of Americans wiped out their emergency savings during COVID-19 and another 11% had to borrow to cover everyday expenses, according to CNBC, putting a spotlight on the inability of many to survive financially following a job loss or economic downturn. And the problem isn’t temporary; being strapped can also impact their progress toward their long-term financial goals.

Not having enough in an emergency stash or even the basic knowledge of everyday budgeting, saving, and spending highlights the need for financial wellness – and companies can help by offering programs in the workplace. In fact, according to Bank of America’s 2020 Workplace Benefits Report, 62% of employers feel extreme responsibility for their employees’ financial wellness, and employees are hungry for help.

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Financial Wellness Defined

So just what is financial wellness? Financial wellness can mean different things to different people, but generally speaking, it’s education or training designed to improve a person’s overall financial situation and stress. And this last point is important since financial stress not only impacts workers personally but can affect their attendance, productivity, and morale at work as well.

Available Offerings

While retirement plans come to mind when many people think of workplace financial wellness, today, the offerings are much broader. A number of options are now available that you can either provide yourself or through a third party, including:

- basic financial literacy and money management to help workers develop good financial skills and habits
- debt management programs, including student loan repayment management
- a platform of tools and resources, like retirement income planning tools or ways to track finances
- advice from a financial advisor or planner to identify financial goals and areas of need in employees’ overall financial picture

A good way to identify what type of services would be most relevant to your employees is to use surveys. And be sure to conduct them annually since situations like COVID-19 can impact what they view as meaningful support.

Measuring Success

Once you implement a plan, you’ll want to measure whether it’s delivering any value to your staff. Plan to ask employees to complete assessments periodically to gauge things like their use of the programming, level of financial stress, or their retirement readiness.

And remember it’s not just employees who benefit from these programs – companies who adopt financial wellness initiatives report greater worker satisfaction, reduced stress, and improved retention, among others according to SHRM.

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Jim Sampson, AIF®, C(k)P®, CPFA | Director, Hilb Group Retirement Services. Sampson is the Director of Retirement Advisory Services at Hilb Group Retirement Services in Warwick, supporting retirement plans for companies and their employees for the last 24 years.

Investment Advisory services offered through Global Retirement Partners, dba Hilb Group Retirement Services, a registered investment advisor.

The Pandemic: The Biggest ‘I Told You So’ For Financial Wellness

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The Pandemic: The Biggest ‘I Told You So’ For Financial Wellness

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