Financial wellbeing in the workplace

Financial wellbeing is more important than ever with everyday money worries at the top of people’s minds. We provide practical guidance to help employers improve financial wellbeing in the workplace.

Why financial wellbeing matters in the workplace
How we can help
Further information and evidence

What is financial wellbeing?

For us at the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS), financial wellbeing is about feeling secure and in control. It’s about making the most of your money from day to day, dealing with the unexpected, and being on track for a healthy financial future. In short: financially resilient, confident and empowered.

Money and Pensions Service: Financial wellbeing stories in the workplace

Employers across the UK share how and why they're building the confidence of their people to manage money.

Narrator: “All across the UK, employers in every sector are building financial wellbeing for their colleagues, customers and communities. Together we've started something.”

[Montage of interview clips]

Sarah, Employer, Derry: “I think when everybody is doing their best in terms of their financial wellbeing, people are more calm, they're more relaxed, they can focus on their work. They're not thinking oh my goodness I've got that bill coming out soon, or that massive credit card debt that I’ve run up. You know, people are able to focus on what they're doing, they're able to drive their own career forward, to drive the company forward.

We really care about our people's wellbeing. We want to make sure that they're happy, that they're healthy, that their mental wellbeing is good, so we really wanted to educate people on how to be smart with their money, make sure that they're not wasting it. You know, the temptation is there to buy a really nice car that maybe takes up most of your income, or buy yourself a nice designer handbag every so often, whenever you get your bonus, but we wanted to make sure people are being smart and maybe putting that money towards a house deposit, or into savings and making sure they're thinking about the long-term

Lesley, Employer, Glasgow: “Staff health and wellbeing is important to us and we recognise that there were a number of external sources of information that were suggesting there was a link, particularly amongst NHS staff with, with financial wellbeing issues.

So we asked some questions in a staff survey which gave us a little bit more detailed information and then we were able to take that forward with a specific project around promoting financial wellbeing for our staff.

The kind of things that we've put in place were things like improving the ways that we communicate with staff, and that was simple things like including messages on our payslips, so that people know where to turn to if they have got an issue. We've got web-based information and we have a number of publications, some of them electronic, some of them paper-based. There's a lot that organisations can do without having a large budget in order to do that. It's about looking through, looking at your processes and your practices through a bit more of a financial wellbeing lens.”

Anne, Employer, Derry: “We see the health and wellbeing of our employees as being a key factor in helping us create a strong sustainable company because a lot of our employees are young and they still live at home. A lot of what we can provide them with regard to financial wellbeing and support we absolutely believe is applicable to their wider family. So, when we offer them access to the information, the toolkits, the calculators, we encourage them to share it with the families because there's absolutely something for everybody.

I'm thinking about looking forward to retirement and you know it happens so quickly and you really need to start young. So, you need to start young thinking about your savings. You need to start thinking young about a pension. I genuinely and quite often will say to these guys, you know what, I remember being 22 and it's just like in a flash of an eye, all of a sudden I'm not 22 anymore.

We have a lovely group of employees and to be able to support them in all areas of wellbeing with finance obviously being a very, very important factor in that and I feel, genuinely I just feel very lucky to be able to do that. We can support them and help them to prepare for all these really exciting milestones and in their life. It's really nice.”

Narrator: “It’s all about feeling secure confident and empowered with your money. Organisations like yours are making a big difference to financial wellbeing.”

Thank you to:

Sarah, Alchemy Technology Services, Derry

Lesley, NHS, Glasgow

Anne, Alchemy Technology Services, Derry

Why financial wellbeing matters in the workplace

Financial stress can seriously harm people's mental and physical health, affecting individuals, workplaces, and communities.

A recent survey by Lane Clark & PeacockOpens in a new window found that:

over half (56%) of employees have found themselves in financial difficulty
52% feel that financial pressure impacts their job performance
almost three out of four employees feel stressed, with over 75% saying it's because of financial or work-related pressures

For many, financial wellbeing has a fundamental impact on not only their choice of job, but their performance within that role and how much time is spent addressing financial issues during the working day.

A supportive workplace environment can be a key part in building better financial futures for your employees.

How we can help

We offer a range of free support, expertise and resources to businesses to enhance financial wellbeing in the workplace. You can:

get in touch with your local partnerships team for free support and practical ways to help you build financial wellbeing across your organisation
use our online guides on MoneyHelperOpens in a new window, available in English and Welsh
download or order printed guidesOpens in a new window (also available in alternative formats such as braille) - they're free to not-for-profit organisations (commercial organisations must arrange their own print run)
take part in our annual Talk Money Week awareness campaign, which provides a platform for conversations about money in all walks of life.

Free and impartial guidance from MoneyHelper

MoneyHelperOpens in a new window offers free, simple and impartial guidance, backed by the government, on money and pensions. This includes a range of online guides, tools and calculators in English and Welsh to help build a better financial future.

Our guidance covers all kinds of topics, including:

This free and impartial money guidance can be accessed on the phone, WhatsApp and through digital channels. It can also be provided through guides in braille, large print and audio formats.

Pensions guidance is also available through face-to-face appointments.

Contact our partnerships team

Contact our regional partnerships team for free support and practical ways to help you build financial wellbeing across your organisation.

Based near you, our partnerships teams can help bring your organisation an understanding of some of the local financial wellbeing challenges.

If your organisation has multiple sites, contact the regional manager closest to your head office.

Further information and evidence

We have a wealth of evidence to share with you on what works to build financial wellbeing in the workplace.

Our guide Financial Wellbeing in the Workplace – The Essential Guide for EmployersOpens in a new window outlines seven simple steps you can take to support your workforce with their financial wellbeing.
Watch a short video where we share to some of our insights on workplace initiatives from the Financial Capability LabOpens in a new window
Our one-page thematic review on this topic summarises a range of research on How we can improve financial wellbeing in the workplaceOpens in a new window
Explore the further research on our Evidence HubOpens in a new window