Are We Really Making A Difference For Employees?

PWC is one of the largest accounting firms in the country working with some of the largest corporations in the US and even around the world.  Given their size and scope, they do a lot of research, and one annual report they have been publishing for several years is around Employee Financial Wellness.  They have been producing this report for 8 years.
 
The report is interesting because it asks employees a number of questions regarding their overall financial wellness and preparedness.  How confident are employees regarding their financial decisions?  What kind of decisions are employees making?  What do employees think about their future?  And the ones I find most interesting are those around what their employers can do to help them with their overall financial wellness.
 
Financial Wellness and programs around them in the workplace have been very popular for a number of years now.  It’s very seldom I come across a 401k prospect that doesn’t have some type of “program” in place to address financial wellness for their employees.  So you would think that after several years of workplace initiatives employees would be feeling better about their finances, right?  Less stressed than ever.  Ya, well, it doesn’t seem to be working out that way.
 
In 2017, the PWC survey indicated that 46% of employees said that financial or money matter challenges were their #1 stressor.  After years of trying to help employees, the most recent PWC survey indicates that 59% of them now consider financial or money matter challenges their #1 stressor.  Almost 30% more employees are stressed about financial matters now than they were just 3 years ago!  At this rate, we should have everyone completely freaked out about financial matters by 2025!
 
So what the heck is going on here?  During this time frame, the economy was strong, inflation was virtually non-existent, and unemployment was at historic lows. We can’t blame any of those factors.  What I think is going on is an over reliance on technology as the solution to this issue.  I see it all the time as companies roll out new programs to help employees.  They are well intentioned, and often well-constructed, but they lack much human involvement.  
 
In my practice, when I am able to meet with employees face-to-face to review their situations and make plans, they are not more stressed after our visit(s) but less stressed.  Sure we use technology as an enabler, but the real work happens face to face.
 
If you are an employer who has implemented a Financial Wellness program but are questioning its effectiveness, I would love to sit down and discuss how we can change that result and begin getting your employees less stressed!
 
Please give me a call.
 
Pete Welsh a/k/a 401kGuy