Slideshow 5 reasons student loan repayment is the next big benefit

Student loan repayment has been getting some increased attention in the benefits world. And it will continue to get even more, says Tuition.io founder and CEO Brendon McQueen. Here are 5 reasons why student debt repayment is going to become the new hot benefit trend that employers will offer — and employees will jump on, according to McQueen.

“It’s super bipartisan, it’s pro-consumer and it’s pro-business,” McQueen said recently during the Dig|Benefits conference in Austin. “People like it. Employers go over the moon for this.”

Just like benefits that have come before it, student loan repayment has the potential to be a great tool for recruiting and keeping talented employees, McQueen argues. “Employers are offering this because the talent war race is real,” he says. “It will recruit, retain and engage [employees].”

According to McQueen, it’s an easy benefit to offer because everyone can acknowledge this is a problem worth fixing. There isn’t a lot of education or convincing needed on this. It’s unlike a health savings account, in which employers and advisers have to spend a lot of time and energy explaining how it works or why it helps.

Student debt repayment programs are an obvious appeal for millennials, who are entering the workforce massively in debt. On average, statistics show, students graduate with about $30,000 in student loan debt.

But, these programs are also important for older workers. In fact, McQueen notes, 35% of all student debt is held by people over the age of 39. And a lot of them, too, have Federal Parent PLUS Loans, loans for parents to help finance their children’s college educations.

Dealing with student debt will also motivate employees to start contributing to their 401(k), which often gets put on hold when student debt bills pile up, McQueen says.