Black and Hispanic workers are more likely to be financially challenged by debt and less able to handle an emergency or sudden large expense than their White counterparts, according to a new report.
Moreover, while evaluations of work-life balance improve with income, Black and Hispanic workers in households earning $75,000 per year or more are less content with the work-life balance at their organizations than their White counterparts.
They are also less likely than White workers to give high ratings to their employers’ efforts to improve various aspects of their wellbeing, Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) said.
“There are some profound differences between the experience of Black and Hispanic high-income workers with $75,000 or more in household income and their White counterparts.”
The report, Making Workplace Wellness Programs Fit the Needs of Black and Hispanic Workers: Findings from the 2021 Workplace Wellness Survey, found that when race/ethnicity differences are examined by income, most reported differences between Black, Hispanic, and White workers are minimal at lower-income levels when it comes to perceptions of:
- debt
- stress about financial future
- confidence regarding employee benefits decisions
- work-life balance
- keeping a good balance between work and caregiving responsibilities
- employers’ efforts to improve various aspects of worker well-being.
“Our latest research raises the question—what can employers do to address and improve the financial well-being and work-life balance of workers, and of Black and Hispanic workers in particular?” Lisa Greenwald, CEO, Greenwald Research, and co-author of the report, said in a statement. “Our findings show that flexibility to use paid time off and more benefits and resources to help with emotional well-being/mental health would be the most valuable improvements employers could make to employee benefits programs and offerings.”
More income, greater disparities
There are some profound differences between the experience of Black and Hispanic high-income workers with $75,000 or more in household income and their White counterparts. Black and Hispanic workers are more likely to consider debt to be a problem for their households than White workers.
These Black and Hispanic workers are also less likely than White workers to agree that they have enough savings to handle an emergency or sudden large expense and report less preparedness to handle a variety of financial complications than White workers, including an unexpected expense of $500 or $5,000.
Black and Hispanic workers are also less likely to be satisfied with various aspects of their job. The disparities in satisfaction correlate with differences in workers’ confidence to make informed decisions about employee benefits. These differences in satisfaction by race/ethnicity are most pronounced within higher-income groups.
Higher-income Black and Hispanic workers are also less likely than White workers to give top ratings to their employers’ efforts to improve various aspects of worker well-being across physical, emotional/mental health, and financial dimensions. While workers overall rate work-life balance positively, higher-income Black and Hispanic workers are overall less likely than White workers to say that work-life balance at their company is excellent.
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.
