Five Ways to Protect Employees’ Financial Wellness

Posted on October 8, 2021 in Healthy Living

How would you rate the financial wellness of your employees? Financial wellness can be defined as a comprehensive understanding of the full financial picture including debt, savings, retirement planning, insurance status, investments, and more. Employees may have a wide range of financial wellness depending on their age, career progression, and previous knowledge of financial matters. As companies are competing for employees in a low-unemployment economy, protecting an employee’s financial wellness is a retention strategy to show interest and investment in their future.

Now is the perfect time to communicate with employees to remind them to utilize their benefits, especially those that contribute to their financial wellness. Employees are reviewing benefit enrollment packets and considering their options for coverage for next year. In addition to providing competitive benefits packages including dental and vision coverage, here are some ways employers can help protect their valuable employees' financial wellness: 

1. Encourage employees to use their health benefits. Between work, home, family, and community activities, remembering to schedule regular appointments for medical, dental, and vision checkups might fall to the bottom of the to-do list. Remind employees that preventive care is good for their emotional and financial health because they are staying ahead of any potential issues. 
2. Remind employees to plan ahead to use flexible spending account balances. Panic ensues when employees realize that the year is almost up and it’s too late to use the balance of their flexible spending accounts. By planning now, they can schedule preventive care appointments or elective procedures, purchase over-the-counter medications, pay for non-covered medical, dental, and vision services, and more. Check with your plan administrator for your balance and eligibility.   
3. Explain your value-added benefits coverage. Many plans, like Delta Dental and DeltaVision, offer additional value-added services such as extra benefits based on health conditions and discounts on vision and hearing services. An important factor in your financial wellness is the peace of mind in knowing you have the coverage you need. 
4. Host a retirement planning workshop. Invite your retirement plan provider to meet one on one or in groups to educate new employees or provide plan updates to existing employees. Retirement plan participation is a benefit that employees may put off in their early career years. 
5. Emphasize your other employee benefits. Do you offer childcare assistance, tuition reimbursement, or an employee assistance program? Make sure you are emphasizing your full range of benefits. In today’s competitive job market, it’s important to remind your valued employees of everything your company offers them. 

As we head into the final quarter of the year, remind your employees about the many ways you are looking out for their financial wellbeing. Emphasize and communicate your total benefits package, including the value-added benefits, and encouraging employees to take full advantage of preventive care, to show your company cares about their financial wellbeing.  

Delta Dental of Iowa and DeltaVision offer coverage options to employers of all sizes with a range of investment options. For more information on employer plans visit deltadentalia.com/employers.