Give ‘em points for trying.
Financial wellness is everywhere, and employees are taking positive steps when it comes to their health and wellbeing, but despite their best efforts, most don’t view the state of their physical, mental, financial, social or career wellbeing favorably.
However, most employees (four out of five) rate their employers’ wellbeing programs as valuable and believe these tools—and employer support—will help them make progress.
According to the 2019 Health and Financial Wellbeing Mindset study from Alight Solutions and the National Business Group on Health, most people say they are doing everything they can to promote and maintain their health, up nine percentage points since 2014.
However, 62% of employees have a less-than-positive perception of the current state of their wellbeing (averaged across all five dimensions of wellbeing).
Feelings of self-control also declining
In addition, the percentage of employees who feel personally in control of various aspects of their wellbeing is also declining. Just over half of employees feel in control of their health, which is down seven percentage points from 2018; and only 40% feel in control of their financial future, down six points from 2017.
Further, more than one third believe that a truly healthy life requires more time, attention and/or money than they are willing to spend, up 15 percentage points from 2014.
“Employees have incredible access to health and wellbeing information—from websites and apps, to wearable technology, to social media, there is no shortage of data, advice and opinions,” Ray Baumruk, vice president of consumer experience research and insights at Alight, said in a statement. “But more may not be better. Employees appear to be feeling overwhelmed by information and that, despite their efforts, they are not progressing quickly enough to the wellbeing outcome they desire. Fortunately, as a trusted resource, there is a huge opportunity for employers to break through the clutter and support their workforce with information and experiences that are simpler, more personalized and more integrated into their employees’ lives.”
While perceptions of personal wellbeing may be waning, data from the report indicate employees do in fact, value the wellbeing programs that employers offer more than ever.
More than three-quarters of employees feel that their employer’s wellbeing programs make the company more attractive for potential employees and 70% say it is one of the reasons they stay at their jobs.
Additionally, employees rate these wellbeing programs favorably.
Paid time off exchanges, onsite medical clinics and personalized support for navigating healthcare are rated as the top three services offered.
With more than 20 years serving financial markets, John Sullivan is the former editor-in-chief of Investment Advisor magazine and retirement editor of ThinkAdvisor.com. Sullivan is also the former editor of Boomer Market Advisor and Bank Advisor magazines, and has a background in the insurance and investment industries in addition to his journalism roots.
