Cost of Living | 5 ways to support your employees' financial wellbeing

According to the ONS, inflation has risen by 8.6% over the last 12 months, and to steady the ship, the Bank of England may be forced to raise interest rates to 4% in 2023. Despite the government’s new mini budget promising to do more to support household incomes, it still may not be enough to curb rising expenses.

But is it incumbent on employers to do more to support employees when their finances are equally stretched? Well, you may need to, or else slumps in performance and higher levels of sickness absence may follow, which will inevitably impact your bottom line.

The Money and Pensions Service estimates that almost eight in 10 UK employees take their money worries to work, affecting their performance. On top of this presenteeism, 4.2 million worker days each year are lost in absences caused by a lack of financial wellbeing.

During this live interactive discussion, our HR and legal experts will take a closer look at five possible solutions many employers are considering in an attempt to support the financial wellbeing of their workforce, including the pros, cons and legal considerations of each.

These interventions include:

• Meaningful benefits packages: With Britain already experiencing the biggest fall in real pay since 1977, free cinema tickets and pizza will no longer cut it. So, what are the most sought-after benefits right now?
• One-off bonus payments and hardship loans: You may be tempted to pay a discretionary bonus payment or loan to struggling employees, but are there any legal considerations you need to consider? How can you ensure that you’re acting fairly when deciding who receives this support?
• Pay benchmarking and progression: The recruitment crisis has inflated salaries, leaving loyal employees feeling underpaid for their roles. We’ll talk you through pay and job role review exercises that help ensure all employees are being compensated fairly, ultimately leading to higher retention levels.
• Supporting employees to support themselves: A short-term cash injection may not always be the best answer – or affordable. We’ll be offering advice on making money less of a taboo topic and sharing helpful resources you can signpost employees to for free support.
• Cost-neutral initiatives: From referral incentives which allow employees to earn extra money to flexible working requests and free meals, we’ll look at the ways employees can earn more and/or spend less without considerable cost to the business.

Throughout each section, we’ll be running live polls to better understand your plans and any reservations you might have, before providing examples of how we’re supporting businesses to implement these interventions right now.