With COVID eliminating much of discretionary spending—such as commuting, and other entertainment expenses like eating out and going to the movies—research by the Canadian Payroll association actually found that in 2021 “53 per cent [of people] been able to put away more [money] than a year ago and fewer (36%) are living paycheque-to-paycheque than at any time in the past 13 years”.
Despite this improved financial picture, employed Canadians are now faced with increased expenses as things “return to normal”. The several years of decreased spending may have actually had little impact on overall financial wellness, with Statistics Canada findings showing that household savings are decreasing as spending increases and consumption is outpacing disposable income.
Of course, this financial stress does not exist in a bubble. Studies show that “financially stressed employees are 5 times more likely to be distracted at work and 46% spend 3 hours or more a week dealing with financial issues”.
Payroll can be the solution.
Companies can be leaders in addressing financial complacency by urging employees to take initiative and control of their own finances. This can be accomplished by leveraging payroll systems to empower employees to improve their financial health and wellness.
Rise Wealth, powered by OneVest, empowers employees to reach their savings goals with a fully automated, digital investing experience. Even if employees are struggling with their saving-to-spending ratio, they can still invest in their future with as little as $1. Each investment portfolio can also be tailored to the individual’s goals and risk tolerance.
Payroll has the ability to empower your people to take control of their financial well-being. This national payroll week—and any other week, of course—employers should actively support financial wellness by offering employees tools to invest and manage finances.
