The perks of the job are something that employers tend to be really good at providing, or really poor. The job advert and salary package often draw people into viewing a vacancy and applying, but employment benefits can play a vital role in attracting and retaining the right people.
We’re all used to the Cycle to Work schemes, annual leave schemes and flexible working packages that have become almost expected in employment offerings – but financial education and wellbeing coaching have not been prominent in the professional world until recently. It’s an intriguing development and one that could be extremely valuable for employers and employees if people realise what they are being offered.
Is it a sign of the times?
The current economic climate and everyone’s experience over the last 3 years following the pandemic have dragged a significant proportion of the population into hard times. Headlines have been dominated by the so-called “Cost of living crisis” and coverage of inflation and other economic factors, but financial education is an important step to help people understand that their financial situation can always be improved and is largely in their hands.
Employers that genuinely care about their employees should be willing to help them financially, particularly if they can’t simply increase pay. Investing in financial education training and coaching is a great thing and it should be more widely implemented for a number of reasons.
How can it help employers and employees?
Financial education may seem like another wishy-washy perk of the job that rarely gets used, but its potential is huge and the impact it could have on people’s lives is enormous. The issue is that some people can’t understand something they aren’t willing to be open-minded about.
From an employer’s perspective, this latest perk of the job may result in people being less worried about a pay rise because they can effectively give themselves a pay rise with financial planning and budgeting. However, employees need to fully understand the messages being delivered, otherwise, this sort of advice can fall on deaf ears.
From an employee perspective, financial education and money management tips could revolutionise the way they view personal finance and allow them to kickstart their own financial education. It can help people to make more of their money by tackling debt, tracking spending and building savings in an appropriate account, as well as other tactics. The power and control this can help employees to realise is potentially life-changing, never mind giving them the tools to build a better future for themselves and their loved ones.
This trend is likely to continue to develop and it wouldn’t be a surprise if we see more employers offering life and financial coaching as a perk of the job. It represents genuine care on the part of the employer and a strong statement that more money isn’t always the way.