A missing piece in your benefits package could be killing your bottom line.

 
According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), employees facing financial challenges at home spend at least 12 hours per month at work trying to fix those problems. That’s 7.5% of a full-time employee’s total hours each month spent on personal issues instead of your company’s next big project.

“Employees are on the phone trying to work out payment plans that keep them out of collections or constantly on a mobile device checking account balances to make sure they have sufficient funds to cover the next bill that’s due. It’s endless,” explains Beatriz Hartman, Business Development Manager at Consolidated Credit. “And every minute spent worrying about their own finances is one less minute that they’re working to generate revenue for your business.”

Even more troubling, it’s not just hourly wage employees who are feeling the pressure of financial challenges at home. According to a survey from SunTrust, roughly one third of households earning $75,000 or more annually report that they are living paycheck to paycheck with almost no money in savings to cover an emergency.

“This is a problem that can affect everyone from administrative and support staff to middle management and even executives,” Hartman affirms. “The loss in productivity can be widespread with potential to significantly decrease profit margins. And it’s not a question of whether you’re employees are distracted by finances or not. These days it’s a question of just how many members of your staff are facing this kind of situation.”

A corporate problem calls for a corporate solution

Given that productivity issues caused by financial challenges at home have become so endemic, more and more companies are looking to provide solutions as part of their employee benefits packages. Alongside company health and dental plans and 401(k)’s, employers are now offering financial wellness resources that help employees achieve stability that translates to greater productivity at work.

“By and large, personal finance is learned in the school of hard knocks unless someone provides a means for individuals to learn how to manage their money, debt and credit effectively. Implementing corporate financial wellness programs is a sign that companies are stepping up to fill this need for their employees,” Hartman says. “And filling that need not only increases productivity, but fosters loyalty as well.

For more information on KOFE, Consolidated Credit’s Corporate Financial Wellness platform, call 1-800-901-8304. Our business development team can help you customize KOFE to fit the needs of your employees so you can start seeing improved workplace productivity before the end of the year.