Only a third of employers have a clear process in place to deal with employee wellbeing concerns, despite an increase in the number of employees raising an issue.
According to research from Mintago, 87% of managers have been approached by an employee in the past 12 months to discuss concerns relating to their wellbeing. Mental health (48%), job satisfaction (43%) and financial wellbeing (40%) were the most common issues raised.
Among employers who had discussed financial wellbeing issues with employees, 68% cited the cost of living crisis as the leading source of concern. This was followed by requests for a pay rise (50%), keeping up with rental or mortgage payments (46%) and worries about debt (43%).
Despite this, nearly half (47%) of managers admitted feeling uncomfortable discussing financial wellbeing issues and only 33% have a clear process in place for handling employees’ wellbeing concerns.
Chieu Cao, CEO of Mintago, said: “We should not be surprised to see financial wellbeing concerns on the rise – the cost-of-living crisis has been an assault on people’s finances, and money worries are naturally very common. Yet these findings act as a stark wake-up call regarding the dearth of support structures within many workplaces, and it’s crucial that organisations of all sizes and sectors take note.”
Cao said a lack of support structures and meaningful solutions are “harming both managers and their staff” and firms should take steps to address this.
Cao added: “Ignoring or downplaying these concerns – no matter how uncomfortable they may be to talk about – risks not only the health and happiness of employees, but also the overall productivity and success of an organisation in the long run. It’s time for leaders to build a culture that allows their workforce to raise concerns with confidence, and then back this up with robust tools that deliver support in the areas employees most need it.”
