Debt Awareness Week

This week (23^rd – 27^th March) is Debt Awareness Week, a chance for everyone to share the message that nobody needs to deal with debts on their own.

Having any sort of debt, no matter how big or small, can cause significant stress to someone and impact their day to day lives. And this can be said for your employees too. Becoming distracted, having low morale and decreased productivity could all be signs that someone is struggling with their finances. This not only impacts your employee but can have a negative impact on your business too.

So at a time where cost of living is increasing, first time buyers are struggling to get onto the property ladder and credit is becoming easier to access, it has never been more important for employers to do more to support their employees financially. And to help you get started, we’ve concluded three ways you could support your employees this Debt Awareness Week:

Encourage conversation and actions

Most people have some sort of debt, whether it’s a mortgage, car finance or personal loan. But some have more problem debt like high interest credit cards or pay day lender loans. No matter what type of debt people have it’s important to talk about it. Sharing personal experiences can help people feel like they’re not alone. But it’s important that employers don’t just encourage a conversation but encourage people to take action too. And, during debt awareness week, there are many debt organisations offering their services and resources for free to help people start to combat their debt and improve their financial wellbeing.

Early intervention

There are easy tips, you as an employer, can pass onto your employees. On payday communicate the importance of paying off any debt as soon as possible. Trying to pay debt at the end of the month is trickier and likely to result in less or no debt getting paid. You can also share budget planners to help your employees calculate their income and outgoings, what they have left each month and what they can save. There are many free budget templates online, like this one, which also explains how make a budget too. Like most things, putting in preventative measures is better than having to fix a bigger problem.

Don’t leave employees in the dark

Don’t let your employees feel like they have nowhere to turn. Although some people would never think about going to their employer for financial help, it doesn’t mean they don’t need it. There are many things employers can do to make sure employees aren’t left in the dark when it comes to their finances. Online wellbeing portals can provide confidential advice and guidance and webinars or one to one sessions can give tailored support to employees with specific needs. And, for those employees who may not even know they need some support, financial education programmes can be a great way to get the conversation started and help improve the financial wellbeing of your employees.

 

No matter what time of year it is, supporting your employees with their financial wellbeing is key part of having happy, healthy employees and there are many free and paid for solutions to help you do this. Here are ten ways employers can create budget for a financial wellbeing strategy.

If you would like any further information about supporting your employees with reducing their debt and improving their financial wellbeing, contact us today.

 

Secondsight is a trading name of Foster Denovo Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Information correct as of 18/03/2020