Employers have an important role to play in their workforce’s wellbeing

Diversity of age groups in the workforce results in diversity of skill sets. The collaborative technology and social media skills that millennials typically possess will be complemented by the more traditional business skills and experience often held by older generations.

Reflecting the customer base

Multi-generational workforces are more likely to reflect their organisations’ customer or user bases than those with employees of a similar age, enabling better interaction with consumers, service users, clients and other stakeholders. Diverse workforces which embrace collaboration enable each generation to learn from and teach one another, providing invaluable insight and allowing the organisation to evolve and adapt.

One way the workforce – and wider society – has evolved in the twenty first century is the tendency for individuals to be more open about the issues they face. No longer do employees leave personal problems at the office door, but instead progressive organisations offer their workforce – often through the types of wellness benefits they provide – help in tackling the problems they have outside work.

This process has been driven in part by younger generations’ tendency to look at their employer as an enabler that they work with, rather than providers that they work for, a view predominantly held by older generations.

Opening up about money

One particular area in which a greater openness is being sought is financial wellbeing, despite our long-held taboos about discussing our personal finances. We are beginning to understand the impact that concerns about our money, lack of savings and debt can have on our wellbeing.

At Neyber we have accrued considerable knowledge about the both the state of the personal finances of different generations within the workplace, the effect on their financial wellbeing and the consequences of this for their productivity.

Our survey of 10,000 UK employees, “The DNA of Financial Wellbeing”, tells us that the UK working population lacks financial resilience and the proportion of them struggling with money worries has increased over the last year, from 65% in January 2015 to 70% just over a year later.

We know that a higher proportion of millennials than any other age group are worried about their money. This manifests itself in them feeling stressed, struggling to focus and missing a day of work.

In all, money worries have an impact on 62% of this age group’s ability to work. This is a particular cause for concern because in the next ten years generations Y and Z will comprise three quarters of the UK workforce.

Older staff worry too

But this is not just a matter for millennials. Similarly the proportions of generation X and baby boomers with money worries, who lost sleep, struggled to work and took a sick day because of them were not significantly lower than for younger generations. There is an impact on the abilities of 58% of generation X members and 47% of baby boomers to do their jobs. The effect of financial concerns on employers’ operations are experienced across all generations at work.

And this is an issue that businesses must take account of, particularly via their benefits packages. Just as employees are becoming more open about their personal finance concerns, so too are they expecting more help from their employers. Most people across the generations would welcome access to affordable loans and savings, financial awareness programmes and support and guidance from their employer.

But employers also need to recognise that there are subtle differences in the way different generations respond to financial concerns. A higher proportion of people born before 1980 will turn to either partners, friends and family or professional services to discuss money troubles than the younger generations. In general, all age groups find the option of talking to loved ones more appealing than the bank manager or a financial advisor.

This is where employers can step in and educate members of their workforce on strengthening their financial wellbeing by improving their credit scores, borrowing sensibly and appropriately, and advising them on ways to pay into savings and a pension. Employers are no longer just organisations that employees work for, but they have an important role to play in the overall wellbeing of their workforce.

Monica Kalia is co-founder of Neyber.

This article was provided by Neyber.