Financial stress: How to ease the burden on your deskless workers
As the cost of living in the UK soars, a financial wellbeing programme at work can relieve some financial stress on shift-based (‘deskless’) employees. Here are the employee benefits employers should consider.
The cost of living crisis is affecting everyone in the UK. The current rate of inflation is 9.9%, the highest in 40 years. The cost of petrol is soaring and food prices have increased. Mortgage rates are set to rise further over the coming months, while renters are affected too with rents across the UK at a record high after rising 3% in the last year, according to the Index of Private Housing Rent Prices (IPHRP).1
Unfortunately, financial stress isn’t new. It is reported that 8.3 million adults across the UK find meeting monthly bills a “heavy burden” and are likely to miss more than two bill payments over six months.2 Deskless or frontline workers are at particular risk given the low salaries across sectors like hospitality, childcare, retail and healthcare. In 2020, over half of UK frontline care workers were paid less than the real living wage3 and nurses in England are currently on strike in an ongoing row about pay and working conditions.
With financial pressures only set to increase, employers can help. This is how.