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How employers are reframing financial wellbeing in 2026
REBA’s Financial Wellbeing Research 2026, together with WEALTH at work, reveals how leading UK employers, representing more than 1.2 million employees, are enhancing their approach to financial wellbeing to protect productivity and boost financial resilience.
Financial support services see dramatic growth
Actions aimed at improving financial wellbeing are undergoing a rapid expansion.
Adoption of all financial support services, such as pensions or financial wellbeing champions and mid-life financial MOTs, saw a sharp rise between 2025 and 2026, which is set to continue through 2027 and 2028, given the risks around cost-of-living increases and future retirement inadequacy.
Although some services are offered by only a minority of employers, this shift indicates a pivot to supporting employees to make their own decisions.
Mental health and existing benefit drivers
A key driver of this pivot is the strong link between financial strain and workplace mental health. More than four in five (82%) employers rank improving workforce mental health as very important to their HR objectives, acknowledging the direct link between personal financial strain and drops in workplace productivity, energy, and engagement.
Rather than purchasing costly new benefits, organisations are leveraging existing resources. The report shows that more than nine in 10 (93%) organisations are actively working to boost awareness and engagement of existing financial wellbeing support, while over three quarters (79%) either have or plan to embed financial wellbeing directly into wider health and wellbeing frameworks.
The need for financial inclusion
Themes of financial inclusion, workplace savings and retirement adequacy are also taking centre stage.
Findings from REBA’s Financial Wellbeing Research 2026 show that almost three quarters (74%) of organisations now incorporate financial inclusion into their financial wellbeing approach, ensuring benefits meet the needs of different employee groups.
Interest in workplace savings schemes has also seen a significant increase. While workplace savings have existed for decades, there has been a distinct rise in interest in options ranging from payroll deductions for emergency savings or schemes that enable savings for holidays or large ticket items, through to ISAs and GIAs.
This can largely be attributed to the severe toll that compounding financial stress – from housing to care costs – is taking on employee resilience.
As employers seek to justify these initiatives to executive leadership, there is a clear push towards improved data maturity, transforming financial wellbeing from an unproven expense into a measurable business driver.
Download the full report to access the research, employer case studies and strategic frameworks to future-proof your reward strategy.
Supplied by REBA Associate Member, REBA
Supporting the reward and benefits community to pursue best practice and drive excellence in their strategies
