Financial Wellbeing Matters at Work
When we talk about mental health at work, we often focus on stress, burnout and workload. But there’s another issue quietly sitting underneath many people’s anxiety levels every single day.
Money
The reality is that many workers are only one unexpected bill away from real financial difficulty. A broken boiler. The car failing its MOT. A washing machine packing in. A spike in energy bills. A pet emergency. Time off sick.
For households already juggling rising costs, even a relatively small unexpected expense can create panic. And that stress does not stay at home. It walks through the workplace door every morning.
Right now, millions of people across the UK simply do not have a financial safety net. The Financial Conduct Authority found that one in ten people in the UK have no cash savings at all, while a further 21% have less than £1,000 available for emergencies.
Researchers working with the credit union movement, including Dr Pål Vik at the University of Salford, have warned that many households are becoming financially exhausted. People are saving less, borrowing more and finding it harder to absorb even small financial shocks.
Financial resilience should not be seen as separate from mental wellbeing or public health. Work associated with the Swoboda Research Centre highlights how access to fair finance, savings and trusted community financial institutions can act as a form of preventative infrastructure, helping people withstand financial shocks before they become crises that damage mental health, family stability and wider community wellbeing.
Without savings, people often end up with very limited choices. Many turn to overdrafts, credit cards, Buy Now Pay Later schemes, payday lenders or wage advance apps simply to bridge the gap between wages and life. Some of these products are marketed as financial wellbeing tools, but growing concerns are being raised about workers becoming trapped in cycles of dependency and repeat borrowing. That is why payroll savings schemes through credit unions can make such a difference.
Saving directly from wages before the money hits a current account helps people build small but consistent savings habits. Even £5 or £10 a week can slowly create a financial cushion that reduces stress and improves resilience over time. And unlike many commercial financial products, credit unions are owned by their members and exist to improve financial wellbeing rather than maximise profit.
Research commissioned by the Money and Pensions Service found that payroll deduction savings schemes with credit unions can help employees build and maintain emergency savings while also improving wider financial wellbeing. For employers, this is not just about being nice. It is about creating healthier workplaces.
Financial stress can contribute to absenteeism, reduced productivity and poor staff retention. Supporting employees to build financial resilience can help people feel more secure, more focused and better able to cope when life throws something unexpected at them.
Across Greater Manchester, SoundPound credit unions already work with hundreds of employers to provide payroll savings and affordable loan services directly through workplaces. The Greater Manchester Good Employment Charter recognises that good work is about more than pay alone. Alongside fair wages and secure employment, it highlights the importance of employee wellbeing and financial resilience, including encouraging employers to offer access to credit union accounts and payroll savings schemes as part of a healthier workplace.
It is a simple intervention, but one that can help staff build savings, reduce financial stress and avoid falling into cycles of high cost debt when unexpected bills hit.
The model itself is refreshingly straightforward.
Employees choose an amount to save directly from salary each month. That money goes into a credit union savings account, building a pot for emergencies, goals or future plans. If members later need to borrow, they can usually access affordable credit rather than turning to high cost lenders. And importantly, many people who start with small payroll deductions continue saving long term.
One example highlighted during Talk Money Week involved an opt out payroll savings partnership where, nearly two years after launch, approximately 95% of employees enrolled in the scheme were still saving regularly through payroll deduction.
That tells us something important – People do want to save. Often they just need systems that make it easier.
There are also powerful stories emerging across the wider SoundPound network about how savings and affordable finance can improve people’s lives. SoundPound Stories shares examples of members accessing fair finance, improving energy efficiency, reducing costs and building greater financial stability.
South Manchester Credit Union’s #HowsYourBalance campaign highlighted how over 70% of members continued saving regularly even after repaying loans, alongside evidence that established members were significantly less likely to worry about money.
Financial wellbeing is not separate from mental wellbeing. The two are deeply connected.
During Mental Health Awareness Week, perhaps one of the most practical things employers can do is ask a simple question:
Are we helping our staff build financial resilience before a crisis hits?
Because sometimes improving mental wellbeing is not about another mindfulness webinar. Sometimes it is about helping someone quietly build £300 in savings so that when the washing machine breaks, their whole world does not feel like it is collapsing.
And that is exactly where credit unions can help.