An employee who is stressed is an employee who probably isn’t focusing 100% on their job — and finances are a major source of stress for many people. This is why the financial situation of your team members can have a big impact on your organization’s efficiency, engagement, and profitability. As their manager, it’s up to you to help out where you can.
The Root Causes of Financial Insecurity
In order to feel better, your employees need more money — right? Well, it’s not always that simple. Before you can offer solutions, it’s important to take a step back and consider why someone may be struggling financially in the first place.
Small Margins: There are many reasons why someone may feel financially insecure, and one of the most common is a lack of savings. Living “paycheck to paycheck” means getting the bills paid, but not much else. Not having enough money saved for emergencies or unexpected future expenses can cause an immense amount of stress.
High Debt: It’s also quite possible your members are feeling burdened by high debt levels. Having a large amount of debt, such as credit card debt, student loans, or medical bills, can make it difficult to manage a household in a way with enough left over to create long-term financial certainty. Many forms of debt also tack high interest rates onto the initial purchase — making things even more expensive!
Unknown Costs: There is also quite a bit of uncertainty about the future right now, as America’s economy has been shaky in recent months and years. Economic uncertainty, such as inflation that results in rising prices for consumer goods, can make it difficult for your team members to plan for the future. How can one feel financially secure if they’re not sure whether a dozen eggs will be in their budget for this week or not?
Financial Illiteracy: No matter how much a person makes, they’ll never gain a proper foothold on their budget and long-term finance goals without a true understanding of how finances work. It could be that your employees aren’t financially secure due to a simple lack of financial education. Without knowing about personal finance and budgeting, they could unknowingly make poor financial decisions, resulting in the inability to save money.
Why Employers Should Care About Financial Security for Their Workers
There’s a lot in it for you too. This security won’t just make them happier, it will make them a better employee as well. Companies that prioritize the financial well-being of their employees are viewed as more caring and supportive, and rightfully so. This contributes to a positive company culture and employee morale.
Financial insecurity can have significant effects on an employee's mental and emotional well-being. It can take a physical toll as well. This type of stress will have a negative impact on employee productivity and focus, whereas financial security can lead to a more relaxed and motivated workforce. Anything that causes stress, anxiety, and depression must be addressed at a departmental level.
People that struggle with financial insecurity might also avoid making choices that support their health and wellbeing — like paying for an expensive medication or eating nutritious food because it doesn’t fit in the budget.
It's important for you to help your team members take control of their finances and support to help them achieve financial stability. Employees who feel financially secure are more likely to be engaged in their work and take a more active role in company initiatives and decision making.
3 Ways You Can Help Your Employees
Creating more engaged employees should be your goal with every decision you make! With that in mind, here are several reasons ways your organization can make your employees feel financially secure:
#1 Offer Financial Wellness or Planning Help
Offering financial wellness programs or resources, such as financial planning seminars or access to financial advisors, goes a long way toward ensuring your team members are financially secure. These financial wellness programs will enable your team members to better manage their money by providing them with education and resources on financial topics they may have never had before. These programs often include budgeting and debt management.
Helping people set realistic financial goals, understand their current spending patterns, and develop a budget that works for them goes a long way to breaking the pattern of living paycheck to paycheck. By providing your team with the knowledge and resources they need to make informed financial decisions, a financial wellness program enables them to better manage their money and achieve their financial goals.
Again, there’s a little something in it for you too; in today’s job market, you want to be a sought-after place to work. It’s worth noting that companies that offer benefits like programs to support financial wellness are more likely to attract top talent in the job market.
#2 Change the Frequency of Their Pay
Sure — everyone wants more money, but there’s more you can do to help them be more financially secure beyond just pay raises. You can change the frequency of pay, for example, by adding weekly paychecks instead of monthly or bi-weekly.
This simple change can help employees feel more financially secure because they have money coming in more often and the bills aren’t stacking up at home. In industries with high turnover and difficulty attracting workers, this can be the difference it takes to make people want to work for you instead of a competitor!
#3 Undergo Regular Employee Reviews
You may wonder how the decision to offer employee reviews has anything to do with helping them financially, but having a conversation on a regular basis which each employee actually does wonders for their financial security.
For one, employee reviews are the best way to have the data and analytics necessary to provide performance-based bonuses or incentives. They are a way to recognize and reward employees for their hard work.
Maybe the employee in question isn’t quite ready for a raise yet, but these conversations also provide opportunities for professional development and career growth, which can lead to higher salaries and increased job security. No matter what you say in the employee review and what next-step decisions are made, maintaining open lines of communication between employees and managers ensures they feel informed of workplace decisions that affect their financial well-being. That’s a good feeling to have!
SubitUp’s Employee Management Software Supports Financial Wellbeing
At the end of the day, a more financially secure employee leads to increased employee satisfaction and retention. That’s really, really important. When employees feel financially secure, they are more likely to be satisfied with their current job and company, as well as less likely to leave for another career opportunity.
By making your employees feel financially secure, you’re able to improve the overall well-being of your workforce, attract and retain top talent, and improve the overall performance of your department. Our employee management software helps you do much of this.
One big area we can help is with the employee reviews themselves. In our software, you can track each team member’s progress, improvement, scores, and certifications in order to determine whether or not they deserve a raise. Our software aggregates staff performance data to use in the decision-making process, like:
- Average shifts worked per month
- Certification statuses and upcoming expirations
- Attendance records and time clock data
- Add/drop/swap shift history
You can save data to an employee profile to access at a later date. This way, you will always have a sense of that employee's performance and growth track — making it possible to help them stay on course to meet their professional and financial goals. Next time you have a review with the individual, you’ll know right away whether or not they’ve made improvements on their weaker areas to earn them a raise or bonus.
That’s not the only area where SubItUp helps. Our software allows you to cut costs, and pass the extra funds on to your team. Better scheduling, made possible by our AI-enabled scheduling software, makes it possible to stay within the payroll budget so you can have the extra funds to award worthy raises. You won’t just know who deserves a raise — you’ll have wiggle room in the budget to actually do so!
Your team members are worried about finances. Don’t wait another day to offer them support and services they need to ease this burden. Contact our team today and learn more about how our software can help you, help them.
