Personal financial stress is rampant in today’s workforce. It shows up in statistics, actions, and the day-to-day conversations employees have both in and out of the workplace. For HR and Finance leaders, the question becomes: are you doing enough to support your employees’ financial wellbeing?
A useful place to start is your current benefits package. Helping employees understand, access, and use what you already offer may create more financial flexibility. Here are three things to rethink about employee financial stress and the benefits meant to help.
Let’s start with some of the (frightening) figures around financial wellness. Data from the 2026 Goldman Sachs Asset Management Retirement Survey & Insights Report shows that retirement savings are one of the first things to be affected. Only 39% of respondents said they increased their retirement savings, while the share who reduced their savings went from 8% to 14%. And the effect was felt across all generations.
Part of the challenge for employees is what Lincoln Financial calls the Financial Stress Loop. Anxiety over finances makes it hard to focus on managing those finances, which increases the stress, and exacerbates the challenge of fixing the issue. This loop affects the employee today and down the line. According to the Goldman Sachs report, 70% of employees have delayed a major financial goal because of their current situation. Those goals include things like creating an emergency savings account, increasing their retirement savings, paying off debt, or buying a home.
And the problem doesn’t end with the employee. Financial insecurity ultimately shows in the work being completed by employees. The PNC Bank report indicates that 85% of workers worry about their personal finances during the workday and spend an average of 3.5 hours each week focused on those concerns. Over half of respondents in the Goldman Sachs survey said financial concerns make it difficult to focus at work, and 32% missed work in the past year because of a financial challenge. But worst of all, 34% of respondents say they are likely to leave their employer because they need to improve their financial situation.
And there seems to be a disconnect in the way that employers and employees feel about financial wellness. According to PNC’s 2026 Financial Wellness in the Workplace survey, three-quarters of employers said they believe workers are at least somewhat prepared for retirement. However, only 45% of workers themselves said they felt prepared. And only 10% felt very prepared! In many cases, perception is reality, so it’s important for employers to find ways to support employees who are feeling the squeeze.
A recent study by Prudential Financial highlights the disparity between what organizations offer and what employees feel like they’re being offered. The 2026 Benefits & Beyond study showed that 85% of employers believe their benefits package helps employees meet life’s challenges at any stage, while just 64% of employees agree.
"Employees don't necessarily want more benefits," says Bianka Douglas, Vice President and HR Business Partner at Prudential. "They want help finding the benefits that matter most to them. When benefits feel more relevant and easier to use, employees are more confident in their decisions and more connected to their workplace."
An additional layer of complexity for HR and Total Rewards leaders is that the types of financial concerns often vary by generation. Housing and debt payments affect Gen Z and Millennials most, day-to-day expenses are being felt by Gen X and Boomers, and healthcare and medical expenses seem to affect everyone!
For benefits leaders, these gaps raise a practical question:
Do employees understand how the benefits you offer can address the financial concerns they face?
But help may be closer than you think – these solutions may already be a part of your current compensation package when presented the right way.
“Employers continue to invest in benefits but the real opportunity is helping employees understand, access, and use those benefits in ways that improve financial outcomes,” says Kaley Keeley Buchanan, EVP and Head of PNC Financial Wellness Solutions.
One of the ways this can show up is in programs like PTO Exchange. Employees can convert the value of some of their PTO hours to fill in the gaps that ordinary take-home pay can’t. For some, that may be using a few hours to pay for a car repair or a broken water heater. For another, it may be used to pay down a student loan that is causing stress and anxiety. For another, it may be a lump sum contribution to their 401(k) account to get their retirement savings back on track.
The idea is that creating more choice and flexibility within your current benefits structure can accomplish many things at once. It can help meet employees where they’re at, when they’re there. And it can also help organizations get the greatest ROI from their existing Total Rewards plan. This can satisfy the needs of both the HR and Finance teams.
Before adding another benefit, ask: Are employees getting the full value of the benefits you’ve already invested in?
Start by reviewing where employees feel the greatest financial pressure and whether your existing benefits give them practical ways to respond. Creating more choice and flexibility may help you make that investment more useful to the people it is meant to support.
To learn more about PTO Exchange, visit https://www.ptoexchange.com/request-a-demo