Essential health care workers deserve better financial benefits

The Great Resignation has officially come to an end as interest hikes, slower wage growth, inflation, and layoffs have prompted more Americans to stay put at their jobs. But while many industries driven by office workers are no longer scrambling to fill roles, there is still a significant shortage of front-line workers nationwide. Nearly half of small business owners recently reported having job openings they couldn’t fill. As a result, companies that rely on essential workers have been raising hourly wages and offering creative new benefits to compete in the labor market.

The health care worker shortage is most dire, as their work is quite literally life and death. Many professionals in this industry are understandably burnt out after years of the pandemic, with nearly 1/3 of nurses considering leaving their patient care roles in the next year. As a result, the U.S. currently needs more than 37,000 people to join the workforce across primary care, dental health and mental health. How can we make these roles more attractive to new graduates and career changers, to ensure the American population stays alive and well? The health care industry has pulled a few levers to remedy this, such as redistributing unmanageable workloads, automating workflows, and attempting to expand the labor pool to new entrants, but these solutions have unfortunately proven to be insufficient.

It may sound simple, but to attract and retain the best workers, employers must understand employees’ life circumstances and what gets in the way of performing at work. Front-line workers are financially stressed, with 38% claiming that running out of money before payday adds undue pressure, especially when they’re already struggling with economic forces like inflation and wage stagnation. On top of that, the Biden Administration recently announced that student loan interest and payments will resume in September, making money concerns even more worrisome for workers saddled with debt.

The nature of their work — including low hourly wages and irregular work schedules – means many health care workers are living paycheck to paycheck, like more than half of Americans. An HR manager at a nursing home in a college town recently told me that the company’s employees even started donating plasma to make ends meet. To become productive and to thrive at work, health care professionals need holistic, flexible financial wellness benefits that make it easy and accessible to solve their money problems. Employers that don’t offer this support will see their workers fall into the trap of predatory, high-interest financial options that claim to improve cash flow but can lead to a crippling cycle of debt.

Aside from the usual 401k’s, Employee Assistance Programs, and pay cards that many companies offer, more businesses are starting to offer financial benefits like on-demand pay in their total rewards packages. Allowing workers to get paid as soon as they clock out not only eases the burden caused by an unexpected expense, but it’s also extremely beneficial to employers. Small business owners shouldn’t have to give out free wage advances from their own pockets so their employees can afford the gas they need to get to work, as one empathetic entrepreneur told me she does.

Just a few of the reasons why companies should invest in on-demand pay:

• Attracts new hires in a competitive job market: If you can provide health care workers with more control over their finances, they’ll want to work for you over a competitor that offers less financial support. In fact, 81% of employers say financial wellness tools help attract higher-quality employees.
• Increases retention: When employees feel valued and satisfied with their benefits, they stay at companies longer – in contrast, 43% of employees leave their job due to poor benefits. Lower turnover means lower recruitment, training, and onboarding costs.
• Reduces insurance costs: Employees who have the time, resources and financial means to focus on their health tend to have lower illness rates, which leads to less expensive health insurance premiums.
• Improves motivation: Workers are more willing to pick up shifts when they can get paid on demand and they’re more productive when they feel valued, thus driving positive business results. I talk to companies that have recently resorted to offering $50 to $100 bonuses to workers who are willing to take overnight shifts because they’re so understaffed. Offering pay at the end of that overnight shift increases employees’ willingness to work them.

For employers that want to explore on-demand pay as a financial wellness benefit for the first time, there are a few essential considerations to keep in mind. Choose a provider that supplies on-demand pay for free, with no predatory fees or requests for “tips,” which could leave your workers even worse off than before.

Moreover, don’t forget that on-demand pay is only part of the equation; the bank account where those funds go matters as well. Many providers transfer those funds to employees’ existing bank accounts, where those funds will be eaten up by fees. Others transfer it to prepaid cards where those funds are not FDIC-insured.

The best option is to find a provider that offers a combination of both FDIC-insured, low-fee bank accounts, and On-Demand Pay. And perhaps most importantly, select an on-demand pay provider that is compliant with lending laws across the U.S. When it comes to health care, there is no room for operating in regulatory gray areas, so it’s necessary to partner with companies that are fully compliant to reduce your risk.

Related: Financial wellness: The No. 1 requested employee benefit

When workers’ financial needs are addressed, health care providers have happier employees and healthier patients. Employers that offer these benefits move the needle not only for their own businesses and workers, but also for the larger health care industry and the wellbeing of communities across the country.

Nico Simko is Co-Founder & CEO at Clair.