Supporting employees during the Cost-of-Living crisis

The current economic climate in the UK is causing huge challenges for employers and their HR teams. The extreme rise in the cost of living means that people are wanting (and needing) higher salaries, at a time when organisations themselves are finding it impossible to keep up with the soaring rate of inflation. With businesses needing to retain their staff, as well as being able to attract talent, organisations must think outside the box to find ways to stand out.

This was the topic of discussion for our FuturExec: The Academy members at the latest in a series of HR Roundtables hosted by Macmillan Davies. Sam Pepperell, Senior Consultant in our Manchester FuturExec team shares the findings.

It was clear that the Cost-of-Living Crisis is on everybody’s HR agenda right now and it was encouraging to see how businesses are thinking outside the box when it comes to the methods and tools being used to provide support to employees.

Of course, the size of the business and budget is a consideration, it’s not a one-size-fits-all, but what was evident is that there are so many ways to provide support and alleviate the pressures aside from increasing employee salaries.

The importance of mental health and wellbeing support was highlighted in the latest ‘State of Financial Wellbeing’ report which cited 76% of people have suffered a decline in their mental health as a direct result from the crisis. It was clear from the roundtable discussions that without creating a transparent and non-judgemental work environment that removes the stigma attached to experiencing financial difficulties, employees can feel reluctant to come forward for support and may not really know what support is on offer.

Communication is key to ensuring employees are aware of the support available to them and how they can access that support. Some of the methods discussed included roadshows, workshops, onsite visuals, and providing regular updates. What was also highlighted was the importance for the business to be transparent and communicate how they, as a business, are managing the crisis and to share any positive plans for the future to reassure employees, whilst of course always remaining realistic.

Supporting employees during this challenging economic time and clearly communicating the support on offer will evidently result in increased retention and employee loyalty, reduced absenteeism, employee engagement, and help to enable future talent attraction.

Listed below are some of the tactics which came out of our session, falling into four main categories: financial support, financial wellbeing, benefits & perks, and mental health & wellbeing. Take a look to see if there’s anything else you can be doing to support your employees right now;

Financial

• Salary Increases in line with inflation
• One-off Cost of Living payments
• Incorporating annual bonuses into salaries
• Bringing bonuses forward
• Interest-free loans
• Allowing employees to dip into their salaries

Financial Wellbeing

• Providing free independent financial advice
• Running financial workshops
• Financial First Aiders
• Providing Managers with training on how to support employees

Benefits & Perks

• Discounts on groceries, retail stores, cinema tickets, coffees, tech
• Eye care
• Dental care
• Life assurance – reviewing current providers to ensure the offering is competitive
• Private healthcare
• Electric car schemes
• Providing free breakfast and basic food supplies throughout the working day
• Allowing the ability to work from home to save on travel expenses
• Season ticket loans
• Providing a free bus to the workplace

Mental Health & Wellbeing

• Discounts on gym membership
• Online GP appointments
• Private healthcare
• Online wellbeing sessions and fitness classes
• Mental Health counselling
• Mental Health First Aiders
• Encouraging work-life balance
• Flexible hours
• 4-day working week

Find out about FuturExec: The Academy

There are several ways for you to get involved with The Academy, from speaker and mentor opportunities to becoming a participant yourself.

To find out more, please contact our team at hello@mdhr.co.uk

Get in touch

Should you wish to have a confidential chat with Sam Pepperell to discuss the current HR market or your search for work/recruiting into your team, please contact her directly at spepperell@mdhr.co.uk

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