Are more of your employees taking hardships and loans from their retirement plan? Are your workers increasingly stressed about their financial situation as they are struggling to pay for everyday living expenses as inflation takes its toll on their budgets? Sadly, the answer is likely yes to many of these questions, and employers are left wondering how they can help employees get on a more secure financial path. For many individuals, a lack of adequate emergency savings has been a growing need and focus, which has only been heightened in recent years by the impacts of COVID-19 and inflation. In addition to these challenges, recent industry research has found that without savings to fall back on, 35% of individuals would have to borrow funds to pay a $1,000 unexpected expense, either by financing with a credit card, taking a personal loan or turning to friends or family.

The fact is that unplanned expenses are surprisingly common across all age groups and economic levels — and not having adequate emergency savings to cover unexpected expenses can be a major contributor to financial stress. This can negatively impact workplace productivity and the employer's bottom line, plus it can put employees' retirement at risk. This is where an emergency savings fund can help support the short-term needs that individuals face today, which in turn can help improve their long-term goals and make them feel more financially secure overall.