4 Ways to Help Employees Financially During an Economic Downturn

As we all know, 2020 was disruptive to our lives in multiple ways. It was also disruptive to the economy, as COVID-19 effectively ended the longest economic expansion on record. Entire industries fell on hard times and the unemployment rate skyrocketed. Employers who were able to stay open often had employees dealing with turbulent financial situations.

As an employer, you have several things to worry about when the economy isn't doing so well. But what about your employees? Here are some ways to help them without it having an enormous impact on your business’ bottom line.

Find Ways to Cut Costs

If you’ve been hesitant to move your workforce into remote roles, it might be time to reconsider. Companies who are offering the ability to work from home are seeing cost savings for both the employee and the business. It makes sense, as employees don’t have to spend as much on commuting or eating out for lunch. But it can also help businesses by increasing employee retention, reducing absenteeism, and increasing productivity. Even adopting one or two work-from-home days a week can be a big benefit.

Encourage Financial Wellness Education

Many employees struggle financially because they don’t have the proper education on how to manage a budget properly. Encourage education in the area of financial wellness and more of your employees will be able to improve themselves financially on their own—no effort on your part. It might be a good idea to even set aside a certain amount of time each week (e.g. an hour) for financial wellness education.

Implement a Payroll Card

A payroll card can help your employees financially more than you might think. With Spentra and Money Earned, for example, employees can access up to half of their earned net wages before payday, giving them the flexibility to pay bills, avoid late fees and manage their money better. There are a variety of financial benefits to implementing a payroll card and the best part is that it doesn’t come with any costs for the employer.

Get Better at Empathy

It’s important for employers to show empathy these days, especially in the area of financial wellness. Show that you care about your employees’ financial situations and empower them to take control of them again, even if it’s during an economic downturn. Even if nothing else changes, empathy can be a powerful motivator and encouraging force.

If you’d like to see how Spentra can help your employees financially during an economic downturn, contact us today for a consultation or demo.