Wellness has emerged as a significant challenge for many Americans in recent years. Financial, physical, and emotional wellness challenges influence all aspects of a person's life, including their work. For employers, this means employee stress can result in high absenteeism, high turnover, increased benefits claims, poor retirement and other savings behaviors, and reduced workforce productivity. 

LIMRA surveyed nearly 4,600 U.S. workers to measure their financial wellness levels and the impact that financial wellness has on their work. Our research shows that financial wellness is a concern for many working Americans and that employers should be concerned, as financial wellness can significantly impact workforce engagement and productivity.

Based on our research, we've created a measure of consumer financial health and stress known as the LIMRA Financial Wellness IndexTM. The Index considers a number of factors related to consumers' confidence in their current financial situation, ability to withstand unexpected expenses, and their ability to plan for a financially secure future. The average American worker scores just 5.50 on the Index's 0 to 10 scale, and just over half of workers are considered "distressed," "stressed," or "just managing" when it comes to their financial wellness. Those scoring lower include lower-income workers, women, younger workers, and those who are single.