Retail's unique challenge when it comes to financial wellbeing

“Retailers benefit as sunshine sends post-Brexit spending soaring” read a recent headline in The Guardian, as the sector reported a 1.1% rise in like-for-like retail sales – with total sales rising by 1.9% when compared to July last year. This represents the best performance since January according to the British Retail Consortium and KPMG index.

One could be forgiven for thinking this points to an industry in rude health: a buoyant sector shrugging off the referendum doubters to make hay while the sun shines (literally). But delve a little deeper and the picture might not be so pretty; what about the workers behind these stats?

The vulnerabilities of retail employees

Consider, for example, that of the 2.8m people working in the retail sector in the UK, 50% earn less than £8/hour. As a demographic, these are the most vulnerable and susceptible people to financial distress. Indeed, research shows that the number of retail workers seeking support to deal with payday lenders has increased by 300% in the last two years.

For many employers, financial wellbeing is at the top of the agenda. However, there is too often a disconnect between employer perception of employees’ challenges, and the financial realities employees face. For instance, a staggering 58% of employees claim they’ve never been asked for feedback on their benefits, while 48% feel that their package isn’t tailored to their needs.

Unique challenges make it hard for retailers to understand

The retail sector possesses unique challenges to supporting their employees’ financial health. First, the transient nature of the retail workforce can present challenges to the employer-employee relationship. As a result, retailers can have increased difficulty understanding their employees’ needs. And second, the decentralized nature of employment locations in the retail sector can add a layer of complexity to understanding employees’ financial situations.

These two challenges can make it difficult for retail employers to understand their employees’ financial situations. However, retailers are in the position to make a transformative difference in their employees’ lives. By bridging the informational disconnect between managers and retail employees through simple tools such as staff surveys and focus groups, retailers will gain insight into how they can best help their employees.

The benefits of this increased understanding goes both ways. For employees, this understanding can help them play a more active role in shaping their benefits packages. For employers, this understanding can help improve their benefits offerings, thus leading to more engaged, healthier, and happier employees.

Richard Sexton is client manager at SalaryFinance.

This article was provided by SalaryFinance.