Woman calculating something at her desk with a laptop in the office
Finance & Law
18.07.2025 Sabrina Ludwig 99

Financial wellbeing for employees - why is it important?

Financial health is more than just a good salary. If you help your employees to better understand and plan their own money management, you are investing directly in motivation, satisfaction and loyalty. Because money worries make you ill - and unproductive. Companies that actively promote financial wellbeing create real added value for their team - and strengthen their employer brand at the same time.

Financial wellbeing for employees: Why is it important? 

The term "financial wellbeing" refers to a person's ability to meet their financial obligations, reduce debt and achieve future goals - whether in the near or distant future - financially. 

Companies can increase the financial wellbeing of their employees by paying a fair salary, offering company pension insurance, or providing access to information or webinars that offer guidance and decision-making aids on financial topics. 

"From our consultations, we know that most of the financial worries of employees are due to the fact that many do not know their financial situation exactly and therefore cannot plan well for the present - and certainly not for the future."
Manuela Sontheimer, income and budget consultant, pme Familienservice

Employers who actively look after the financial health of their workforce benefit on several levels:  

  • Employee satisfaction and loyalty can be increased
  • motivation is promoted
  • employee turnover can be reduced.

It can also have a positive impact on the company's image, which in turn makes it more attractive to new talent. Financial wellbeing is therefore a win-win situation: for companies and employees. 

Impact of financial problems on the well-being of employees

When employees struggle with financial difficulties, it often has a serious impact on their performance and well-being. A financially stressed employee may be less focused, distracted or unmotivated, which affects the quality and efficiency of their work. 

In its annual Stress in America report , the American Psychological Association (APA) has repeatedly found that financial worries are one of the biggest sources of stress for adults. In the 2015 study, 64 percent of Americans reported that money is a significant source of stress for them, especially for parents and younger adults.

7 main types of stress caused by financial difficulties 

Here are the 7 main types of stress highlighted in this study: 

1. chronic stress 

Financial worries often lead to long-term, chronic stress, as the feeling of being constantly confronted with money problems is a constant burden.  

2. fear and worry 

A common stress factor in this study was anxiety about the future, particularly about financial security. Many people worried about their retirement savings, whether they would be able to pay bills or how they would cover future expenses (such as medical costs or debt). 

This fear of the future leads to constant worry and a feeling of helplessness, as financial problems are perceived as difficult to solve.

3. sleep disorders 

One of the most common physical stress symptoms associated with financial worries is sleep disturbance. 44 percent of adults in the study said that stress due to financial worries keeps them awake at night. Lack of sleep increases stress and can lead to a variety of health problems, including poor concentration, anxiety and depression. 

4. stress due to job insecurity 

Younger adults and parents in particular reported job stress related to uncertainty about their job or source of income. The pressure to remain financially stable and earn a living can lead to job burnout, which manifests itself in fatigue, frustration and a drop in performance. 

5. physical health 

Physical symptoms are also an important stress factor. The physical effects of financial stress include headaches, stomach problems, high blood pressure and increased risk of cardiovascular disease. These physical symptoms are both a consequence of stress and an additional health factor that can further exacerbate financial stress. 

6. relationship stress 

Financial worries often put a strain on interpersonal relationships, especially partnerships. The study shows that many people experience financial burdens as relationship stress, as money problems can lead to conflicts and put a strain on emotional closeness and communication between partners. 

7. depression and anxiety 

Persistent financial stress contributes to the development of depression and anxiety disorders. The study points out that many people struggling with financial worries feel a loss of control over their financial situation, which increases feelings of helplessness and increases the risk of depressive episodes. 

How can employers support employees with financial difficulties?

If, for example, you as an employer learn of an employee's financial burden through a wage garnishment, you should take this as an opportunity to actively offer support - or at least provide confidential information on who the person concerned can turn to. The earlier you provide support, the easier it is to avert negative consequences.

Getting out of debt is often challenging, but not hopeless. There are various approaches - such as drawing up a budget, negotiating with creditors, debt restructuring or, as a final step, personal insolvency. Professional debt counseling as part of EAP employee counseling, for example, offers valuable support and guidance.

 

EAP employee counseling in all situations - since 1992!

On behalf of more than 1,400 employers, the pme Familienservice Group supports employees in achieving a successful work-life balance and being able to work with a clear head. 

We support working people in crises, e.g. financial difficulties, conflicts at work, addiction or partnership problems or when it comes to care and childcare.

EAP employee counseling

zero Successful as a woman at work: the mindset is important

Two women run up the stairs one after the other
Leadership & HR
06.06.2024 Christin Müller 22017

Successful as a woman at work: the mindset is important

Equal rights in the workplace? Germany is still decades away from this. But women can do a lot themselves to be more successful at work, says HR developer and coach Betty Wollgarten: for example, improve their promotion skills and clarify their relationship to power.

If we continue at the same pace as before, it will be another 30 years before the 100 largest German listed companies have as many female board members as male board members. And this despite the fact that there is no shortage of young female talent. This is the sobering conclusion reached by the Boston Consulting Group in a study. 

The gap between the sexes is also consistently deep when it comes to pay. On average across Germany, a woman earns 180 euros less per 1000 euros of income than a man in the same position. This gender pay gap and the unequal distribution of care work, which forces many women to work part-time, also has a negative impact on pensions.

The framework conditions for women's advancement are therefore disproportionately worse than for their male colleagues. Important starting points for improving career opportunities are, on the one hand, legal regulations regarding parenting, care and nursing duties as well as time policies. On the other hand, companies need to rethink their work culture with its conventions and stereotypes and establish more transparent selection procedures.

Self-test: How great is your development potential today?

Are you ready for the next step in your career? Our self-test for women with leadership potential shows you your strengths and development opportunities.

An important factor: How does each individual woman behave on the job?

Another relevant factor is how each individual woman behaves at work and in her private life - again and again, every day, in every situation.

With these five starting points, women can approach their advancement more successfully:

1. develop your promotion skills 

Women do not shy away from careers and promotion because they do not want to bear the responsibility or because they could not or did not want to lead. They do not lack leadership skills. Rather, they fail one step earlier: they lack promotion skills - in other words, they don't show themselves, talk about themselves and use opportunities to make their own skills visible.

Language and speaking play a major role here: speaking about yourself clearly and without embellishment is also a form of confidence. That's easier said than done: in depth, dealing with your own speech requires perseverance and courage. Who am I? What is [really] important to me? How do I express what is [really] important to me [now]? How do I set unmistakable boundaries without hurting the other person?

2. clarify your relationship to power 

The question of speaking also raises the question of power. The concept of power still triggers a diffuse feeling of unease among women. Many women shy away from the possibility of taking power for themselves or seeing it as a natural part of their career and development opportunities.

Power is something you would rather not touch. Power sounds dirty. The term alone has sinister connotations - especially against the backdrop of German history. However, it is not power that is the problem, but the abuse of power.

Women who want to rise must clarify their relationship to power. Power can be understood as potential, as the ability to do something. In physics, we speak of potential energy, which is used, for example, to drive a mill wheel - or to destroy an entire valley. This metaphor shows the proximity of shaping, creating and destroying, misusing. Bringing the creative power of power and the responsibility that goes with it to the fore brings power out of its dark back room and places it in the light of everyday action. This is a place where women also want to see themselves and make an impact.



You don't have to please everyone. But you do need to know what expectations you have of yourself.
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3. venture out of your comfort zone 

In order to have power over others or something else, in order to be able to shape things, I first have to gain power over myself. This is achieved through self-control. This means not letting myself put up with everything. For example, not believing everything I think and questioning my own beliefs (e.g. "I can't do it", "I can't do it", "I don't have enough experience yet"). It helps to jump in at the deep end from time to time, try something out and do things differently than usual. Venture out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself.

Lock your beloved self-doubts away in a safe from time to time so that they don't get lost and don't get in the way. The incessant thought that others must finally expose you as an impostor can be put outside to cool off and left out in the rain. Here and there, dare to actually attribute success to your competence and performance rather than to chance or luck.

4. choose your role yourself 

What is meant by choosing one's own role? Role expectations are constantly placed implicitly and explicitly on everyone by others. However, you can also choose your own role.

Realize that you don't have to meet every role expectation. You don't have to please everyone either. Also reflect on what expectations you have of yourself that may not be helpful. On the one hand, a role must suit me as a person, and on the other, it must serve the function that I have to fulfill. Person and function come together in the role, and performance can only be achieved through the interplay of these three factors.

As a hard-working little girl, I secure the sympathy of all team members. However, this role could stand in the way of my next promotion. When I lead my team as a fully caring mother figure, I feel comfortable in a bath of harmony. However, I won't score any points with the rival head of department.

5. build networks 

To manage all this, you need allies and supporters in a professional network. Networks that use female leadership and innovation to help break the so-called Thomas cycle, i.e. the phenomenon that describes how management levels are repeatedly recruited according to similarity (management levels usually remain very homogeneous in terms of gender, age, origin and education). Breaking this cycle requires the courage to try things out, information, contacts and continuous learning. Not only informal networks help here, but also professional ones such as the Fund Women in the financial sector or Team Nushu in business. Supported in this way, it can even be fun to get out of your comfort zone and jump in at the deep end.