The benefits help people need right now

As unemployment has soared, accompanied by salary or benefit rollbacks from many employers, millions of people are under financial stress that most people are simply not prepared to manage.

I was recently asked what benefit I would recommend adding to an employer’s portfolio in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. My answer was that financial wellness benefits are now more important than ever. As unemployment has soared, accompanied by salary or benefit rollbacks from many employers, millions of people are under financial stress that most people are simply not prepared to manage.

Financial wellness needs span the generations. As an older baby boomer, I remember my own experiences. We hear a lot about members of Generation Z and millennials who have college loan debt, which is nothing new. When I went to college, I paid my way through a combination of scholarships, college jobs and loans. I never had more than two weeks when I wasn’t working at least part-time, and over winter break and summers, I worked full-time every year. I still had to borrow some money and it wasn’t easy to repay the debt, but I did.