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How Ceridian Is Reducing Employee Debt With This Powerful New Digital Solution

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Workplace wellness programs have grown from a trendy buzzword into a thriving $8 billion a year industry. Companies who invest in employee wellness experience reduced absenteeism and healthcare costs and an increase in productivity, engagement and innovation. Employee wellness is more than health insurance, a gym membership, and the weekly office fruit basket. It’s understanding the interconnection of mental health, physical health and stress management.

Companies are eager to stay ahead of the curve of the digital revolution, therefore, intentionally leveraging technology to improve wellness, collaboration and the overall employee experience. Technology has undoubtedly transformed the world of business and completely redefined the role of human resources.

Traditionally, HR practices were centered around personnel management with little emphasis on talent. Today, technology has taken over the administrative elements so HR departments can focus on business strategy while driving organizational success through its people. As a result, they’re able to learn what’s important to today’s talent so they can shape their workforce to meet the needs of its current and potential workers.

Here are two key areas companies should focus on to maximize the success and wellness of its employees.

Disrupting Financial Wellness Programs

Before getting their first job, American graduates have already accumulated around $35,359 in student debt that will follow a majority of them for the rest of their lives. The increasing costs of student loan debt on top of credit card, auto loan and mortgage payments creates high emotional and financial stress that negatively impacts an employees professional and personal life. A recent Ceridian Pay Experience Report, discovered 80% of workers are stressed about finances with a reported 78% living paycheck to paycheck.

Brin Chartier, director of marketing at LearnLux, said: “when it comes to savings, most workers don’t have enough to cover an unexpected $500 expense.” This forces them to work multiple jobs, withdrawal from their retirement fund, go without basic needs or resort to payday loans.

Moebs Services, a financial research company, found “more than 23 million people relied on at least one payday loan last year” with one in four payday loans being reborrowed at least nine times. Due to the predatory nature of a payday loan, workers remain stuck in an endless debt loop cycle because their urgent need for money forces them to take on a loan with an interest rate of up to nearly 600%.

Inevitably, employers feel the burden employees face through absenteeism, increased healthcare costs and a loss in productivity. Companies are starting to see the benefit in improving their financial wellness tools and the importance of alleviating employee financial stress to improve their overall health.

Last month at their Annual Customer Conference, Ceridian announced their new digital solution, Dayforce Wallet, to improve employee financial flexibility and wellness. According to Justine Janssen, senior vice president of strategic initiatives at Ceridian, two-thirds of workers under the age of 35 expect to have immediate access to wages as they earn them. This is one of the perks that has made working for companies like Uber and Upwork attractive.

In a competitive candidate market, employers who offer a suite of financial wellness tools are more attractive than those with traditional benefits. Despite Dayforce Wallet disrupting traditional pay schedules, Janssen stressed normal payroll processes won’t be impacted. In fact, DayForce Wallet will provide continuous compliant payroll at all times with no additional processing fee to the company. The aim of this digital solution is to reduce financial stress by giving workers ownership over their earned wages immediately.

The current on-demand economy gives workers instantaneous access to transportation, grocery delivery and online marketplaces, yet a majority of employees still have to abide by the traditional pay cycle. Research by the Workforce Institute at Kronos and Future Workplace, found “70% of U.S. workers think the current five day, 40 hour paycheck paradigm is outdated.”

Shifting Away From Traditional Schedules

Flexibility has become a core value of companies around the globe due to a shift in workplace needs by the new generation of workers. As technology evolves, collaborating has become easier than ever. Companies who embrace flexible workplace cultures benefit from increased employee satisfaction, higher retention and reduced overhead costs. The Global Talent Trends 2019 Report observed a 78% increase in the number of job posts on LinkedIn that mention work flexibility. This proves more companies are seeing the value in shifting away from traditional schedules and adopting more flexible ones.

Lisa Sterling, chief people and culture officer at Ceridian, understands the importance of giving her employees the freedom to make their own decisions when it comes to taking time off. On top of their vacation policy, Sterling introduced the Time Away From Work (TAFW) program giving employees the power to take two hours off of work, at any time, for any reason without having to seek approval.

Known as the culture crusader and employee evangelist, Sterling shared in an interview that everyone at each layer of the company, including the CEO, David Ossip, has been taking advantage of the TAFW program. The adoption by leadership has influenced employees to feel comfortable in taking time off to handle personal priorities without worry. This has led to increased productivity and employees being more intentional with their time when they’re at work. 

The Workforce Institute at Kronos Incorporated report discovered “nearly half of workers around the world say they could do their job in less than 5 hours a day if they could work uninterrupted.” Chas Fields, strategic advisor for Kronos, challenges the outdated mindset that working less than the standard eight hours a day hurts productivity. He explained, “workers spend their time artificially inflating their to-do list, scrolling through social media and checking and responding to too much email” in an attempt to appear busy.

Full-time traditional employment no longer holds the same attraction to workers as it once did. Companies around the world are recognizing flexibility and financial wellness are a top priority to today’s workers, and if they don’t adapt, they risk losing out on great talent.

Edit: “The same Workforce Institute at Kronos and Future Workplace report discovered” - Updated to reflect and link research that has been released.

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