Employees who are less worried about their finances do better at work—and of course that creates a ripple that benefits business. It makes good sense to attend to the financial wellness of workers.
Common Sense Solutions
A recent survey of benefits specialists at 1,000 companies, conducted by Ramsey Solutions’ SmartDollar, found that only 3 in 10 companies are offering financial wellness as an employee benefit, despite the fact that it: reduces stress, boosts morale and productivity and helps attract and retain top talent.
As 401k Specialist reports:
Employee financial stress has been linked to increased healthcare costs, high employee turnover, low participation rates in company 401k plans, and distracted workers….Of the companies that do offer financial wellness, a vast majority (81%) say they’ve seen improvements since offering it to their teams, while a whopping 91% say financial wellness made them more competitive in recruitment and hiring.
“We knew, even before the pandemic, that 78% of workers were living paycheck-to-paycheck,” Brian Hamilton, Senior Vice President of SmartDollar, said…. “Those money problems follow people to work, leading to more problems. The survey results show just how uniquely positioned employers are to help.”
Critically Important: 401k Plans!
Saving for retirement is of course a critical aspect of financial wellness—so employer-sponsored 401k plans matter greatly. As Business News Daily reports:
There are many major benefits in offering retirement benefits to your employees, from increasing productivity to attracting new talent. An employee retirement plan can be the backbone of your benefits package and an essential ingredient of a positive company culture that increases employees’ general well-being.
Actions employers can take to help employees leverage 401k saving possibilities include: enabling automatic enrollment; expediting part-time worker participation; and, communicating “catch-up contribution” opportunities to employees 60 and older. Providing even a modest employer match is a big boost for employee savings—and morale.
Experts advise plan sponsors to look at plan participation rates, deferral rates and personalized rates of return at least annually, if not quarterly, to ensure the company-sponsored plan is achieving its goals. Increasing auto-enrollment deferral rates is a great example of how plan design adjustments can help employees save more—and be less stressed too.
As Your Retirement Plan Grows…
Thriving retirement plans need the appropriate coverage—and so do their plan sponsors! Revisit your risk management plan as your retirement plan grows. Let Colonial Surety Company help. Just select an affordable, comprehensive package and receive a three-point coverage solution:
- The ERISA bond required to protect the assets of the retirement plan from theft;
- expenses in the event of a cyber breach; and,
- Fiduciary Liability coverage to protect you and your assets from personal liability.
- Cyber Liability coverage to safeguard your company and plan from covered losses and
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As a plan sponsor, understand this: the ERISA bond required for the retirement plan does not cover you as a fiduciary.
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