Employers have a responsibility to improve their workers' lives—and their employer brand—by providing resources and benefits addressing financial literacy and health. (Photo: Shutterstock)

When people think about wellness, physical and mental well-being are typically top of mind. Recently, more innovative employers have started to take financial wellness into account given the adverse effects financial burdens have on overall health. In fact, 57 percent of U.S. workers are very or somewhat stressed about their financial situation. Additionally, poor financial literacy and money issues can be a catalyst for anxiety and other mental health issues.

As such, employers have a responsibility to improve their workers' lives—and their employer brand—by providing resources and benefits addressing financial literacy and health. Addressing financial wellness also has business benefits as employees experiencing financial problems lose a full week of productivity compared with employees who aren't.

Related: Employees want financial wellness, just don't call it that

When thinking of building a health-focused workplace, employers should go beyond encouraging employees to exercise and stocking healthy snacks. They should also support financial savviness. Here are a few things to consider when implementing financial wellness programs.

1. Don't limit the scope

The modern workforce is comprised of five generations, each facing their own sources of financial stress. Attempting to address only a few buckets such as caregiving expenses and child support rarely leads to success, especially as employees have unique financial goals. Financial wellness is more than retirement preparedness, credit repair or debt management and similarly to other benefit categories, employees have come to expect a more tailored approach.

According to the 2018 Workplace Benefits Report, employees want more personalized and direct guidance than macro-level programs. Moving beyond a one-size-fits-all approach requires resources and commitment from an organization. However, showing your employees you're serious about supporting their financial goals — whether paying down student loan debt, saving for a first home or preparing for retirement — can have a direct impact on the morale and productivity of your team.

Additionally, organizations should also focus on educating employees and giving them tools and resources to be financially literate. For example, Morgan Stanley recently revamped its financial wellness programs to provide more personalized offerings, which includes a new digital portal and a catalog of financial education materials to help their employees better manage their finances.

Organizations looking to make an initial investment here might consider starting by hiring a full or part-time financial advisor to meet with employees, providing personalized advice to better help them address personal goals and needs.

2. Health benefits are financial wellness benefits

The connection between financial health and physical wellness isn't always abstract. As the cost of living skyrockets, many Americans are feeling the crunch of financial stress and looking for innovative ways to control their health-related expenditures. Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA), an employer funded account, can be an attractive benefit because unlike traditional health plans, HRAs go above and beyond routine care to offset costs related to vision, dental, and other health services not covered by their traditional health plans.

Another benefit option to help employees have greater control over their finances are Lifestyle Spending Accounts (LSA). These accounts are self-insured, private spending plans that allow employees to receive reimbursement from a list of health and lifestyle expenses. Employers offer a yearly sum to be placed in the fund, and employees select the amount they want to put the funds toward within those parameters set by the employer. LSAs can typically cover anything from gym memberships and health coaching to personal development and art therapy, and more.

Employers can also partner with various companies to curate and offer discounted health products (ex. fitness trackers) and services (ex. gym memberships, nutritional consultations, etc) in addition to offering stipends for transportation or technology use to lessen the financial burden on employees.

3. Focus less on participation and more on results

Initial efforts at measuring the success of financial wellness programs focused solely on participation. Today, savvy companies are starting to realize that's not enough. While registration numbers are a good starting point, you also need prove that your program is having a measurable impact on employee wellness and financial health, as well as bottom line issues like benefit premiums.

When initiating financial wellness programs, provide employees with tools to track their own progress — whether recommendations for a suite of budgeting apps or access to a financial advisor. Once employees have a meaningful to measure and track success, it will not only help them stay on track, but it can also provide positive reinforcements as they notice progress. Employers can go a step further by incentivizing results and offering perks or prizes for those who achieve their goals.

Employers should see financial wellness as an opportunity to provide a more well-rounded approach to health benefits. Employees stick with companies they believe will support them in their long-term goals. Financial health is on par with mental and physical — and the best companies to work for are treating it as such.

Read more: 

• How to use incentives to encourage financial wellness in the workplace
• 10 findings on employee financial wellness
• Are you supporting employees' financial and physical wellness?

Brian Ancell is president of League's US operations, leading the strategic development, market positioning and expansion of the business across the country. Brian has over 20 years' experience in the health care and consulting industries. He has demonstrated leadership in the development and execution of innovative business strategies.