Businesses aren’t the only ones stressed and anxious about these difficult economic times. Employees (and their families) are also feeling the effects—and many employees are facing very serious financial problems such as burdensome debt, lost income, bankruptcies, and foreclosures. Employees experiencing increased financial stress at home are likely to have a hard time keeping their problems out of the workplace, making them less productive and less able to also deal with routine job stresses.
One low-cost way that employers can help is to offer employees a little time off to seek consumer credit counseling.
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Offering all employees the opportunity to seek credit counseling during business hours, without them having to tap into valuable vacation or PTO resources, can go a long way toward reducing stress and gaining employee loyalty.
Employees can be offered a set amount of unpaid time off (even just a couple of hours) to seek credit counseling. Or, so that employees don’t lose income, paid time off can be offered. If you choose to give employees paid time off for the specific purpose of seeking credit counseling, the paid time off does not have to be counted as earned vacation or PTO, and does not have to be carried over from year to year or paid out when the employee leaves the company. The key to offering paid time off for credit counseling is making sure that you are clear that the time can be used only for credit counseling purposes.
You can also ask that employees obtain verification from the credit counselor that the counseling appointment was attended (without asking the employee to disclose any personal financial details). Verifications should be submitted confidentially to HR personnel only. Whether paid or unpaid time off is offered, employees should also be reassured that no adverse actions will be taken if they seek credit help, and that getting help won’t affect their performance evaluations or status with the company.
Giving your employees this inexpensive benefit can also help motivate them to take action on personal financial issues by sending the message that it’s a common problem, and that it’s better to seek help than suffer in silence. Qualified credit counselors can help employees avert a financial crisis, or assist them in finding a solution for existing problems.
The national non-profit organization Consumer Credit Counseling Service (CCCS) can assist employees with finding a qualified credit counselor in their area, and can be reached at (800) 251-CCCS.