Because retirement has become a key issue, more employees are participating in their retirement plans and more are tapping these same accounts when they encounter short-term financial problems," Davidson said.

More than 90 percent of employees in 2012 said they contributed to their 401(k) plan at work, according to Davidson. "That's an incredibly encouraging number of employees participating. At the same time however, only 51 percent of employees say they have an emergency fund in place to cover unexpected expenses. That leaves 49 percent of the employee population vulnerable to tapping their retirement savings because they can't afford expenses outside of the norm."

Another reason employees are tapping their retirement savings is they don't want to use their credit cards and they have less home equity available to them than they did before the recession, she added.

"Inflation is outpacing income growth, and the job market remains weak, so there are still people out there struggling," Davidson said. "As a result, some see their retirement plans as the only practical resource available to them."

People who earn less were hit the hardest in 2012, but despite employees facing more issues managing daily finances, the number of employees who faced high or overwhelming stress remained low at 18 percent in 2012, down from 19 percent in 2011. This figure was significantly lower than in 2010 and 2009, which were 32 percent and 33 percent respectively.

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