Workplace Financial Education

The benefits and rewards of a financially literate workforce

Part 2

WHITE PAPER

Why offer financial education in the workplace?

If you’re wondering why your employees are coming to work more stressed and tired than usual, it could be because their finances are continually getting worse.

Our debt-to-income ratio is at the highest it’s ever been, so is our non-mortgage related debt. That pressure to reign in spending, pay down debt and deal with other financial issue — such as children’s education or looking after elderly parents — is weighing on many people’s minds.

Financially distressed employees are less productive, less engaged, spend more time away from work and cost companies more than those who are happy and have lower financial stress.

Studies show that financial stress is one of the key contributing factors to mental wellbeing. When people know how to handle their financial affairs, they’re less stressed and come to work happier. The stress from dealing with creditors, rising debts or other financial issues can be overwhelming and many people end up dealing with their personal finances on company time.

Offering comprehensive financial education in the workforce can alleviate much of this stress. Courses that cover retirement savings, debt management, investing and education savings, rather than the usual pension and benefits topics, will help people deal with all aspects of their financial health.

There are two good reasons why companies should offer financial education at work: it creates a more engaged and productive workforce, resulting in faster growth and rising revenues.

This white paper will explain why investing in a financial education program is a must and how it can help your company grow. It will explain how financial stress affects turnover, absenteeism and presenteeism, among other things, and how combating financials issues can improve the company’s bottom line.

Executive Summary

© 2013 Employee Financial Education Division 2

Financially distressed employees are less productive, less engaged, spend more time away from work and cost companies more

employees are financially distressed

1in 4

on the weekend

Employees are more stressed out than ever before

Employees are under enormous amounts of stress. 83% of short-term disability claims and 85% of long-term disability claims in Canada are due to mental health issues.1

Increased stress is affecting everything from engagement and productivity to absenteeism and morale. Here are just a few of the many statistics that speak to how stressed people are:

• 72% of Canadians say they’re stressed2

• 67% of Canadian workers are not fully engaged at work3

• 9.3 days per year were lost due to personal reasons in 2011, up from 8.5 days per year in 20014

These statics likely won’t come as a surprise. Studies show that executives are most concerned about productivity and engagement5, while 65% of senior executives are also worried about employee morale and burnout.6

Causes for workplace stress

There are various opinions as to what’s causing an increase in work-related stress, but most research cites personal financial issues as the main contributor to the rise in mental health issues.

The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety actually says creating a budget can help reduce stress7, while Sun Life says two out of the five key contributors to workplace stress are finance-related.8 (Overall personal finances and the long-term financial support of children and elderly parents.)

Financial stress affects workplace performance

Part of the increase in overall stress is due to a rise in personal financial problems, as Canadians are more indebted than ever before.

• Canadians owe, on average, more than $26,000 of non-mortgage related debt 9

• Our debt-to-income ratios are at a record high 163.4%10

• There was $1.1 trillion in mortgage debt outstanding at the end of 2011, double from a decade earlier 11

Work and personal finances cited as the two greatest stressors in peoples’ lives. — Sun Life health survey 2012

Workplace stress: Causes and effects

1 Towers Watson. Investing in Workforce Health Generates High Productivity, November 2011. 2 Sun Life. Sun Life Canadian Health Index, 2012. 3 Towers Watson. 2012 Global Workforce Survey: Engagement at Risk, July 2012. 4 Statistics Canada. Work Absences in 2011, April 2012. 5 Employee Financial Education Division. Financial Education for Employees Survey, November 2012. 6 Right Management. Canadian Companies Worry About Employee Burnout. September 2010. 7 Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety. http://www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/psychosocial/stress.html. 8 Sun Life Financial. The Burnout Factor, February 2012. 9 TransUnion. Personal Debt Levels Shifting Back to Growth Mode. August 2012. 10 Statistics Canada. National Balance Sheet Accounts, Second Quarter 2012, October 2012. 11 Critchley, Barry. National Post, Rising Mortgage Debt Rendering ‘Canadian Households Stretched Thin’: DBRS.

© 2013 Employee Financial Education Division

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As numerous studies prove, when people are faced with personal financial burdens, their workplace performance suffers.

• Workers waste 15 days while at work (presenteeism), with five of those days being used to deal with personal finance issues.25

• At any given time 20-30% of the workforce is financially distressed

• Financially distressed employees spend 13% of their day (1 hour) dealing with their finance

A 2003 study reported that “employees who are suffering from stress at work are less likely to be productive” and that “financial stress is an important source of distress in people’s lives.”13

A 2008 Shepell-FGI study said, “Mentally and physically healthy employees are far more likely to be engaged than those that are feeling stressed and overwhelmed.”

With work-related stress on the rise, and much of it stemming from personal financial issues, it’s important for employers to offer financial education in the workplace. Studies have shown that when financial problems are reduced, engagement and productivity rise.14

Many experts are now suggesting that employers start offering comprehensive financial training to their employees. Shepell-FGI writes: “Workplace-based financial education programs have proven to be quite effective in helping employees make better financial decisions and reduce their financial-related stress.”14

Workplace stress: Causes and effects

25 Prawitz, A.D., & Garman, E. Thomas. It’s Time to Create a Financially Literate Workforce to Improve the Bottom Line, 2009. 12 Bagwell, Dorothy Caroline. Work and Personal Financial Outcomes of Credit Counseling Clients, August 2000. 13 Kim, Jinhee, Garman, E. Thomas. Financial Stress and Asbenteeism: An Empirically Derived Research Model, 2003. 14 Shepell-FGI. Financial Distress Impacts Health and Productivity. 2008.

© 2013 Employee Financial Education Division4

Financially distressed employees spend 13% of their day (1 hour/day) dealing with their finances.

Many people don’t know where to turn to get the help and advice they need with their finances. Many books and websites provide a tremendous amount of information and many people turn away from them due to a lack of understanding of where they should start. Companies who embrace a comprehensive financial education program are better perceived and enjoy a higher level of organizational commitment from their employees. When employees get financial education that matters to them, they’re 60% more likely to implement that advice than those who receive broad financial information.15

• 74% of people don’t know which sources of information are trustworthy

If employees don’t know where to turn, then they aren’t getting advice.

• 51% of people haven’t sought financial advice in the last two years16

• Only 33% of employees say they are in control of their finances

Employers should take this opportunity to offer financial advice. Reduced stress has numerous work-related benefits, so improving the financial health of your workforce is good for your company.

In addition, employees want their workplace to offer financial education.

• 87% of employees want financial education16

• 47% of workers want their employers to offer advice on benefits17

• 49% want advice on retirement savings

Many employees already take advantage of the financial education that is offered at work and most of the sessions are centered on pensions and benefits. One study shows that 58% of companies offer pensions and retirement planning, while 50% provide education around company benefits.9

Creating a more comprehensive program is the only way all employees can participate and get the financial help they need. Plenty of evidence suggests that if employers don’t offer financial literacy training, then employees won’t seek advice on their own. In addition, the monetary impact on a company due to stress is so great that it makes good financial and moral sense to offer this type of education.

Improving the financial health of your workforce is good for your company and good for the employee.

Why Financial Education in the Workplace Matters

15 Proformative Inc. Most Americans Don’t Act on Financial Advice, Says Finance Survey. October 2012. 16 Employee Financial Education Division. Financial Education in the Workplace, 2012. 17 Metlife. 10th Annual Study of Employee Benefits Trends, 2012.

© 2013 Employee Financial Education Division5

One of the reasons that companies offer financial education is because it can reduce costs associated with workplace stress.

Employers lose billions of dollars to workplace stress every year:

• Stress costs Canadian companies $33 billion a year18

• Work time lost to stress costs $12 billion a year18

• Absenteeism costs $4.5 billion per year18

• In the U.S., workplace stress costs $300 billion a year19

An Australian study found that presenteesim costs companies $26 billion a year, while unhealthy employees take nine times more sick leave than healthy ones.20

The study also found that:

• Presenteeism and absenteeism cost the economy $14 billion a year

• Presenteeism and absenteeism cost employers $10 billion a year

At the Financial Education in the Workplace Roundtable of financial experts that was hosted by the Employee Financial Education Division in Toronto, Laurie Campbell, CEO of Credit Canada Debt Solutions, commented:

“Financially stressed employees are worrying about things like collection calls and the fact that their child is going to university in three years and they haven’t saved. Financially educated employees will be less stressed out, they’ll be less absent from work, they’ll have more morale.”

One of the main reasons why employers want to introduce financial education in the workplace is to reduces stress and therefore stress-related costs. When executives were asked, “Do you think a comprehensive financial education program could reduce employee stress?” 75% though it could.5

When asked, “Do you think a comprehensive financial education program could improve the company’s bottom line?” 52% said yes.5

By offering financial education in the workplace, you’re giving employees the tools to make better money-related decisions, which in turn will reduce stress and lower company expenses. 24% of businesses say they provide financial education to improve their bottom line 5, while employers can save $2,000 per employee per year when their staff members are financially healthy.21

Financially stressed employees are 15% to 30% less productive at work.

Financial Education Can Reduce the Costs of Stress

18 A Development In Mind. The Cost of Stress. 2011. 19 Ball, Ron. TMCnet.com, Workplace Stress Sucks $300 Billion Annually From Corporate Profits, November 2004. 20 Medibank Private. The Cost of Workplace Stress in Austrlia. August 2008. 24 Garman, E. T., Junk, V. W., Kim, J., O’Neill, B. J., Prochaska-Cue, K. Financial Distress Among American Workers-Final Report, 2005.

© 2013 Employee Financial Education Division6

When employees are not worrying about their own finances, and therefore more engaged at work, companies grow faster, there’s reduced turnover, higher customer satisfaction and more.

Studies show that employers who provide financial education to their employees have higher engagement scores. This is largely due to employees feeling more secure and confident about their finances and ties back to the education they received through their company programs. The employees are less stressed and feel the company has helped them. The result is a more energized employee who want to return the favor and help the company.

At the October roundtable, which was held by the Employee Financial Education Division, Ofelia Isabel, Director of Talent and Rewards at Towers Watson, commented:

“(One component) of sustainable engagement is being energized. Does the employee have the mental and physical well-being — the energy — to get the work done? Being financially literate — having that part of life under control and working well and being comfortable — is a key component to that.”

Public organizations ranked in the top quartile of employee engagement achieve an increase in earnings per share that is 3.9 times the increase in earnings per share growth for organizations with low employee engagement.27

Companies with engaged employees see:

• 25% reduction in turnover for companies with high-turnover

• 49% reduction in turnover for companies with low-turnover

• 37% lower absenteeism

• 18% increase in productivity

• 16% rise in profitability28

Just over 40% of companies that do offer a financial education said they do it to boost employee morale, while 46% reported that they offer programs to improve employee and company performance.5

As well, when executives were asked if they thought comprehensive financial education could increase productivity, 60% said yes. 46% also said that financial education could reduce absenteeism and 36% said it could curb presenteeism.

As these statistics show, offering financial education in the workforce can boost engagement, which, in turn, can significantly increase growth and the bottom line. Comprehensive education, taught by an accredited third-party, is what’s needed to help get your employee’s finances in order, reduce money-related stress and create a present, engaged and productive workforce.

High engagement” firms experience 28% growth in earnings per share than “low engagement” firms, which experience an 11% decline in earnings per share.26

Financial Education Can Increase Employee Engagement

25 Prawitz, A.D., & Garman, E. Thomas. It’s Time to Create a Financially Literate Workforce to Improve the Bottom Line, 2009. 26 Tower’s Perrins. Closing the Engagement Gap: A Road Map for Driving Superior Business Performance, 2008. 27 Gallup. Employee Engagement—A Leading Indicator of Financial Performance, 2011. 28 Harter, James, Gallup. The Relationship between Engagement at Work and Organizational Outcomes. August 2009.

© 2013 Employee Financial Education Division7

Studies show that financially stressed employees are also ill more often than other employees, which increases health care and drug costs.

One study found that financially distressed people have increased health problems:

• 51% have muscle tension and lower back pain

• 44% experienced migraines and other headaches

• 29% suffer severe anxiety

• 27% had ulcers or digestive tract problems29

Burnout is estimated to cost Canadian business $12 billion a year, with part of that cost in health claims.30

At the roundtable, Marie Donnelly, Vice-President of Consulting at Aon Hewitt commwted:

“Look at drugs used most often: in a female dominated environment that would be anti-depressants, in a male dominant workforce they might be related to heart. Then look at employee assistance program results. The majority of people are seeking advice for financial issues. That stress shows up through an increase of drugs being used. If you can reduce the number of stressed workers, then you’ve reduce the drugs and, possibly, the costs associated with the drug plan.”

When business executives were asked whether they think a comprehensive financial education plan can reduce drug benefit costs, only 16% didn’t think it would.5

Workplace health care costs are rising, in large part due to increasing employee stress. A comprehensive financial education program would reduce that stress, thereby reducing the number of physically and mentally ill employees. Drug and health care costs will fall and employees will be able to spend more time at work doing their work.

In 2011, health and productivity costs as percentage of payroll totaled 17% in Canada, up from 12.6% in 2009.31

Financial Education Reduces Health Problems

29 Aversa, J., Associated Press. Stressed Over Debt Taking Toll on Health, 2008. 30 Canadian Metnal Health Assocation. “Information for Employers.” http://www.cmha.ca/mental_health/information-for-employers-2/#.UJegomjybxA. 31 Towers Watson. 2011/2012 Staying@Work, December 2011.

© 2013 Employee Financial Education Division9

Financially stressed people tend to focus on the dollar amount: the amount coming in and the amount going out. Individuals who are more financially educated spend less time focusing on the dollar amount and more time on their goals and objectives. People who are in a better financial position or have better control of their finances care more about recognition and advancement then they do about a 2% or 3% raise.

A lot of employees think that a salary increase will cure them of their financial stress, but a higher wage doesn’t guarantee increased happiness.

Studies show that people who make more than $75,000 aren’t any happier than people who make about that amount.37 While the study didn’t address stress, it’s reasonable to conclude that someone’s financial problems won’t be reduced with a raise.

In many cases, when people make more money they spend more money. Depression, which many financially stressed employees suffer from, can also lead to increased spending.38

Another study found that it’s more important that people be adequately compensated for their work.39 This doesn’t mean doling out raises, though. Stress increases when people feel they are underpaid.

The same report says that proper compensation alone won’t alleviate stress. The authors write: “Findings suggest that many personal struggles could be eased through better management of financial resources and a stronger sense of financial wellbeing.”

It’s clear that throwing money at the problem doesn’t help. What does reduce stress is comprehensive financial education. It’s only when employees understand how to meaningfully take control of their finances permanently and for the long-term that they’ll focus more on their work and less on their salary.

People who are more in control of their finances care more about recognition and advancement than they do about a 2% or 3% raise.

Financial Education Can Help the Company Payroll

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37 Kahneman, Daniel, Deaton, Angus. High Income Improves Evaluation of Life But Not Emotional Well-Being, August 2010. 38 USA Today. Study: Sadness Can Make You Spend More, February 2008. 39 Bailey, Woodiel, Turner, Young. The Relationship of Financial Stress to Overall Stress and Satisfaction, Personal Finances and Worker Productivity, 1998

© 2013 Employee Financial Education Division

As much as financial stress affects someone’s work life, it can make home life extremely difficult as well. One study has found that 80% of divorces are directly or indirectly related to financial problems.35 This is not really surprising as more than 60% of people cite personal finances as their number one stress.

An unhappy home life outside of financial stress can have a significant impact on productivity and engagement. Another study found that a divorce costs an employer about $8,300 an employee.36

Divorce, and the turmoil that leads up to a separation, can also ruin someone’s financial health even further. Research has shown that wealth begins falling four years before a divorce and can reduce a person’s net worth by 77%.37

Employee financial education is taken home and helps to increase communication and foster better, stronger relationships between spouses, children and other family members. This compounds the benefit of the education by creating a happier home life and improving the overall mental and physical health of the employees. As proven earlier, this can have a dramatic effect on an employee’s productivity and engagement.

Not only does offering financial education help staff deal with stress due to personal finances, but it also reduces the ripple effects that money-related problems have on home life. By addressing financial issues early, employees can be happier at home and, therefore, more satisfied at work.

Employee financial education helps to foster better relationships between spouses and among family members.

The Ripple Effects of Employee Financial Education

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35 Carr, Damon. Until “Debt” Do Us Part, November 2003. 36 Huffington Post. Downgrading Divorce from Crisis to Process in the Workplace, March 2012. 37 Zagorsky, Jay. Marriage and Divorce’s Impact on Wealth, December 2005.

© 2013 Employee Financial Education Division

It’s evident that there are numerous benefits to having a financially fit workforce. Yet, many companies don’t offer anything beyond the usual pension and benefit retirement training.

The Employee Financial Education Division asked employers that offer some form of financial training why they don’t provide more comprehensive financial education.

• 39% cited the cost of the program

• 28% said it takes too much effort to implement

• 25% didn’t want to give time off to participate

• 23% didn’t know what else was available

• 20% said they didn’t have senior level support5

Companies that offer no financial education were asked why they didn’t offer it:

• 42% worried about the cost of the program

• 30% didn’t know what was available

• 28% didn’t want to give time off to participate

• 24% thought it would be difficult to implement

• 20% said they didn’t have senior level support

Yet, most executives agreed that a comprehensive financial plan can reduce everything from employee stress and turnover to drug benefit costs and absenteeism.

Research has also proven that the expense of running a program is quickly recouped through cost savings and increased productivity.

For companies who are worried about program costs, most financial literacy programs can be tailored to fit within a specific budget. With different delivery options — such as group seminars and webinars — employers can offer comprehensive financial education at different price points. Whatever type of method the company chooses, financial education is an investment that will pay dividends for years to come.

Employee financial education is an investment that will pay dividends for years to come.

Challenges and Solutions to Offering Financial Education

12© 2013 Employee Financial Education Division

Employee Financial Education Can Help Your Company Grow

Numerous studies show that having financially stressed workers affects productivity and company profits. With the economic turbulence and increased workplace uncertainty, stress over personal finances has ballooned. It’s highly likely that many of your employees are financially distressed and aren’t as engaged as you want them to be.

Reports reveal that workers won’t seek out financial help on their own, which means it’s up to you to provide it if you want to reduce employee stress levels. Offering financial education in the workplace is one of the best ways to show your employees that you are concerned about them and want to help reduce their stress.

Stress costs companies millions of dollars a year and studies have shown that absenteeism and presenteeism are on the rise. So while overwhelmed employees may cost businesses a lot now, that number will only grow unless something is done to address this issue.

Comprehensive financial education taught by an independent third-party provider is an ideal way to decrease that stress. When employees come to work happy, they’re more engaged, more productive and they’re physically healthier too. Not only should revenues rise as staff produce more, but also it’s likely demands for salary increases will fall too. Financially stressed employees think a higher pay will solve their problems, but it doesn’t. Studies show that the old adage of “money doesn’t by happiness” is true.

While financial education can improve people’s work life, it also can better their home life too. Money is one of the main reasons why people divorce. A happy home is important for businesses — divorce and mental wellness related stress can be even more costly to companies.

Companies have been resistant to financial education because of things like cost of the program and they worried about giving employees time off to participate, but employees actually want financial education to be taught at work. As well, any costs associated with creating a healthy, happy and productive workforce will easily pay for itself in short order.

No matter how you look at it, comprehensive financial education should be made available to employees. The more financially fit they are, the more profitable your company will be.

Offering financial education in the workplace is one of the best ways to show your employees that you are concerned about them while improving the company’s bottom line.

Conclusion

13© 2013 Employee Financial Education Division

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We develop, deliver and implement customized financial education programs for businesses with 10 to 10,000 employees. We do not sell or manage any products and only provide financial education services.

Education Not Information

Our programs are designed using the most modern adult education methods to ensure your employees are educated and not just informed.

Financial Basics and Much More

Our modules cover the entire personal finance spectrum. Lifestyle planning, debt and cash flow to investing, retirement, tax, and estate planning make up the core programs. Additional programs on elder care, children’s education, and executive compensation are also available.

Available in All Formats

Seminars, webinars, one-on-one coaching, individual financial planning, self-study, recorded webinars and video are all available. All our education can be taught in most formats. We will work with you to help determine which is likely to be most successful.

Delivered by Accredited, Experienced Professionals

All our facilitators are experienced at delivering personal financial education. They also hold at least two personal finance designations. This combined knowledge and experience ensures employees’ questions are answered and the correct information is given. It also increases the rate of change in your employees.

Determining Employees’ Wants and Needs

We work with you by conducting a comprehensive survey to help identify your employees’ wants and needs for a financial education program. We run the survey and conduct a few interviews confidentially to understand the underlying financial concerns of your employees. We use the data to build a proposal recommending the best topics, times and formats to ensure a successful financial education program.

Measuring Performance and Defining Success

Through our proprietary methods we assess the employees’ financial wellbeing prior, during and post education to be able to measure the change. We work with you to define what success looks like and develop ways to measure the performance of your employees.

Program Communication

We know that you and your team are busy running a company. To make it easier and help to ensure greater participation and engagement in the program; we have developed a communications package for you to add your names and logos to. From initial communication from the CEO to the ongoing communication of the various modules, this package takes the work out of getting employees to participate.

To discuss the goals of your business and help your employees achieve a better quality of life, please contact Frank Wiginton.

Financial Education – It’s ALL We Do

Frank Wiginton, CEOEmployee Financial Education Division

frank@employeefinancialeducation.ca employeefinancialeducation.ca 416-999-7392 877-227-8201

© 2013 Employee Financial Education Division

14© 2013 Employee Financial Education Division

Guide Employee Financial Education10 steps to successfully implementing an employee financial education program Part 3

Learn More about Financial Education in the Workplace

White PaPer

Increase Profitability Through Fiancial Literacy Restore productivity and regain organizational commitment through employee financial education

White PaPer

Financial Literacy for Employees Understanding what makes an effective financial education program Part 1

White PaPer

Workplace Financial EducationThe benefits and rewards of a financially literate workforce Part 2

Guide

howtoeatanelephant.cainfoGraPhic 1

Financial Education in the Workplace

87% Financial Education in the Workplace

48% are willing to pay some or all of the costs

have not sought financial advice in the last 24 months

51% of employees will participate in financial education

86%

$2,000 a year employers can save from a financially healthy employee

3:1or more ROI for employers who offer employees quality financial programs

$

during work hours

during lunch breakat home on my own time on the weekend

Preferred formats for receiving financial education:

LEARNING EFFECTIVENESSCOST

EMPLOYEEPREFERENCE

#1 in-person seminars

one-on-one coaching#2live webinars#3self-study/video tutorial#4self-study workbook and guides#5recorded webinars#6social media and short clips#7

#8 blogs/e-mail/newsletter articles

of employees WANT financial education

feel that it is very to extremely important to have an EXPERIENCED financial educator providing financial education

86% 80%feel it is very to extremely important to have an ACCREDITED financial educator providing the education

Preferred times to participate in a financial education program are:

right after work

infoGraPhic 2

Financial Literacy for Employees

Increase Profitability Through Financial Literacy

Restore productivity and regain organizational commitment through

employee financial education

White PaPer

Financial Literacy for Employees

Understanding what makes an effective financial education program

Part 1

White PaPer

Workplace Financial Education

The benefits and rewards of a financially literate workforce

Part 2

White PaPer

Employee Financial Education

to successfully implementing an employee

financial education program Part 3

Guide

STEPS10

Financial Literacy for Employees

Companies top concerns regarding employees and their benefits:

When do companies provide financial education?

of companies feel the education provided is useful59%

PRODUCTIVITYENGAGEMENT

MARKETPLACE COMPETITIVENESS

SALARIESORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT

TURNOVER

BENEFITSDRUG BENEFIT COSTS

MENTAL WELLNESS

ABSENTEEISMPRESENTEEISM

HARASSMENT

WORKPLACE VIOLENCE

during work hours

on employee’stime

lunch breaks

weekends

right after work

69%

50%

of COMPANIES say they offer financial education

of EMPLOYEES say their company offers financial education

vs

Who provides the financial education?

57%company HR

38%independent

3rd party provider

28%benefit provider

27%employee assistance

provider

72% of companies believe employee financial eduction will benefit them

42%online self-study one-on-one coaching

39%live webinar

59%live seminar

How companies are providing financial education:

32%

Companies want education from a third-party educator to be:

82%

88%Unbiased

87%Experienced

Accredited