To retain and attract talent, pay attention to financial wellness
As employees shifted their financial plans to weather the pandemic, many are looking more closely at the benefits offered to them.
Thanks to the rapid rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, the U.S. job market is set to turn a corner. Businesses are reopening, yet struggling to fill positions. A new post-pandemic phenomenon reveals that employees are accelerating their retirement in record numbers leaving gaps where succession plans were not in place. This perfect storm is also making it tougher to retain current talent when geographical location is also no longer an issue for firms that are open to hybrid workplace schedules.
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Business owners have an immediate opportunity to help employees get the financial wellness benefits they need and to offer programs to retain the best talent. A recent Broadridge study of U.S. employees found that one in three employees suffered a reduction of their financial wellness benefits due to the pandemic, which forced some to pull money from emergency funds or modify retirement plan funding. As employees shifted their financial plans to weather the economic impacts of the pandemic, many are looking more closely at the benefits offered to them.
Financial wellness goes beyond tangible tools provided as part of the retirement plan website or run-of-the-mill enrollment meetings. Advisors have an immense opportunity to showcase their value proposition and differentiate themselves by offering customized levels of engagement based on each plan’s needs.
Broadridge found that nearly 80% of corporate managers have said that improving their financial wellness options would help them better recruit and retain their employees. Financial wellness benefits have gone from “nice to have” to a critical tool in the workforce and one of the most important assets a business can have when it comes to being competitive in today’s job market. Additionally, when asked which benefits most influence a job candidate’s willingness to accept a position, the managers surveyed put two at the top of the list: medical insurance and a retirement savings plan.
Against this backdrop, it is heartening to see that managers understand what is at stake. More than 80% of managers believe offering financial wellness benefits to employees should be a priority; a similar percentage say financial wellness opportunities have a significant impact on employee morale.
More than half of the managers surveyed believe that not having the right financial wellness program is causing them to lose talented employees and have even considered leaving their jobs because they too were unhappy with program that was available.
Not only will employees leave if they do not have competitive financial wellness benefits, but their own managers will also leave. Employers who fail to do that will face an uphill battle to retain and attract talent, especially in the overheated job market of today.
When it comes to specific benefits, managers see a hierarchy. When asked which benefits most influence a job candidate’s willingness to accept a position, the managers put two at the top of the list: medical insurance and a retirement savings plan. But not far behind were the second tier of benefits that included dental insurance, retirement matching contributions, life insurance and vision insurance.
Broadridge also discovered that at least two additional benefits are on the radar screen of millennial employees: reimbursement for student loans and access to a financial advisor. In a world where employees are graduating with enormous amounts of debt and financial situations are increasingly complicated, managers have an opportunity to help their employees get the financial advice they need to navigate their unique situations and create plans that set them up for financial success. Wise employers will take note of this if they expect to compete for the best and brightest among millennials and Gen-Z recruits.
If 2020 was the year of benefit cuts, then 2021 should be the year those benefits are restored and enhanced. Be at the heart of helping employers attract and retain talent long-term with a robust financial wellness program.
Cindy Dash is senior vice president at Matrix Financial Solutions, a Broadridge Company.
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