3 ways well-designed benefit programs go beyond financial wellness

This is the third article in a series on financial wellness, stemming from Payroll Integrations' Employee Financial Wellness Report. Read part one here, and part two here.

More American employees are feeling the weight of rising costs, tight budgets and the pressure of an uncertain economy. 

As they navigate these financial strains, most employers feel responsible to support employees' financial wellness. They're expanding benefit offerings, rolling out financial education programs, introducing access to money management tools — and even incentivizing employees to save. And it's paying off.

According to Payroll Integrations' Employee Financial Wellness Report, nearly half of workers feel completely supported by their companies in financial wellness. This is up from 28% who said the same the previous year. 

It's clear that employers are successfully filling employees' financial support gaps — but they still feel like there's more work to be done. Sixty-four percent of companies believe they could be doing more to support employees' financial wellness — up 13% year-over-year. This is likely because employers are realizing that they've only scratched the surface. As employees' needs change and benefits evolve, new opportunities continue to emerge for employers to support their financial wellness. 

For example, employees today name cost-of-living raises (57%), access to budgeting and savings tools (44%), education around retirement (43%) and personalized benefit opportunities (41%) as benefits that would help them feel more financially secure. But these priorities can very quickly change.

Employers are continuing to invest in financial wellness offerings with the primary goal of improving employees' overall financial well-being. But they're also recognizing that well-designed benefit programs   deliver benefits (pun intended) beyond economically sound workers. 

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Here are three ways thoughtful benefit programs deliver added value for employees and organizations:

1. Reducing financial stress supports employees' focus.
Conversations about workplace efficiency today tend to center around AI's impact — how employees use tools to automate repetitive manual tasks, generate actionable insights and focus on higher-level, strategic work. While these innovations are important, often overlooked is how much employees' satisfaction and financial well-being impacts productivity as well. 

When companies offer comprehensive health insurance, retirement plans, emergency savings accounts, family benefits and more, employees can create a safety net to manage unplanned costs. It can be very easy for employees to become distracted at work when they are under financial strain at home. With a strong backing of benefits, employees can focus more and stress less. And when employees feel supported by their employers — they're more likely to reflect that support in the quality of their work. 

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2. Retention is stronger when employees' well-being is prioritized. 
Benefits can make or break an employee's experience with a company. In fact, Payroll Integrations' Employee Financial Wellness Report found that nearly half of employees (42%) would leave their job for a benefits-related reason. While many employees say they'd consider leaving if current offerings don't meet their needs, strong benefit programs can also keep them in a job. A majority of employees name strong health insurance (67%), competitive retirement plans (53%) and family-related benefits (53%) as key reasons they would stay in their current role. 

And employer support needs to go beyond simply offering benefits to educating employees on them as well. Forty-nine percent of employees say that they would retain their role because their benefits are always clearly communicated. Employees are often looking for benefits they already have — but don't know their company offers. Ongoing benefit education ensures employees know about each benefit available to them, and that they can maximize the value of every one. 

To provide this education, employers should hold regular educational sessions, ensure internal systems have accessible, up-to-date benefit information, and consistently communicate with employers about updated and new offerings. What companies are already doing is working: The number of employees who feel completely educated about their benefits has surged to 44%, up from 27% the year before.

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3. Benefits are a deciding factor for prospective talent. 
Companies want to keep existing employees around, but they also want to attract new, top talent. Benefits are just as strong of a tool for acquisition as they are for retention. A majority of employees say they will not accept a new job offer if retirement plans (67%) and health insurance (65%) were not offered as benefits.

As companies hire younger generations, it's important that they're offering benefits that resonate with every age group. Beyond healthcare and retirement, Gen Z workers often prioritize mental health support, fitness and wellness benefits and health savings accounts. This is a bit different from boomer workers who value benefits like pet insurance, flexible work and fitness and wellness alongside the more traditional offerings. 

The best way to understand these priorities is to speak to employees directly. Once companies know what resonates with their existing employees, they can ensure they're designing programs that will attract and support employees across every generation. 

The employers that build their benefits programs with employees' financial wellness in mind will find that their thoughtful, well-designed offerings not only enhance employees' well-being, but strengthen the company as a whole.