30 Jul 2026

hastee report: Lived experiences with financial wellbeing tools, the voices behind the data

This follow up to a February 2026 report in which 1,242 people were surveyed to understand how tools support financial wellbeing in the workplace, features discussions with three panels of people to better understand their lived experience of using earned wage access (EWA).

It finds that a single financial product may serve a range of distinct functions depending on the context in which it is used, yet existing research on EWA has tended to generalise user experiences, implicitly assuming a uniformity that may not reflect the complexity of real-world usage.

Individuals often hold ambivalent and, at times, contradictory attitudes towards EWA, experiencing both positive (such as a sense of dignity) and negative perceptions (such as perceived social stigma) simultaneously. In addition, people use EWA in different ways over their lifecourse.

Download the full report to find out:

68% of respondents were satisfied with their financial position - more than double the national average of 31% - despite lower levels of saving and financial shock resilience within our sample, according to the first report.
Less than 10% of respondents suggested they used EWA for things that could be deemed unnecessary, such as going out and celebrations.