Employers should provide financial education to staff
Correspondent | Monday March 23, 2015 15:03
1. Debts
2. Medical Aid
3. Funeral Cover
4. Housing Allowance, and
4. PAYE
After all of these expenses, Dimpho is left with less than one thousand pula a month. With this remaining money she still has to cover all of her monthly expenses such as transport to work, school fees, food, lights and water. Dimpho cannot afford such luxuries as visits to the salon, or even have a social life, those days are long gone. As the month passes, the stress on Dimpho to find the money for food for her family for dinner tonight, the thought of how she will get to work tomorrow and similar emotions full her day, leaving no time focus on anything else.
“Financially stressed workers are less focused, use more sick leave and are more often absent from work” When poor money management is plaguing your staff, they are at risk of getting themselves into financial trouble. This can lead to too many payday loans and advances, theft in the workplace, and eventually ITC Blacklisting.
This is bad news for business because the financial problems of every employee always spill over into the workplace. This has a negative impact on employee morale, performance and productivity and eventually leads to lower profits for business. By providing your staff with a financial education, they will be motivated and empowered. As an employer you will see your workforce become happier, more focused on their jobs, achieve a higher level of productivity, improvement in morale, reduced absenteeism and excellent customer service which of course leads to Business growth.
Unfortunately, to date, we have not been given the opportunity to learn about basic money matters. As a result, we have become too reliant on debt: “buy now, pay later”. Nobody has shown us why this trend can soon become more then we can afford in repayments, quickly sinking us in deeper debt then we can afford.
Similarly, we fall victim to offers and opportunities introduced to us by skilled sales people, who don’t always have our best interests at heart. As an employer you need to break these bad habits by offering a Financial Education to all your staff as part of your corporate social responsibility.
“All staff should take part in the Financial Wellness Program, regardless of their income bracket or their education level”
Encourage your staff to understand some fundamentals of money management and reduce their emotional stress of debt.
Offer an education program about the following:
1. Dangers of excessive debt
2. Managing household budget
3. Saving for a “rainy day”
You will soon see fewer requests from employees approaching management for loans.
School fees for children
Medical bills
Unforeseen emergencies
Help your employees understand the basics of day-to-day money matters. Teach them how to plan their personal budget. Give them the tools to plan their way out of debt, and then how to start saving.
“Staff with a high sense of financial wellbeing have a comfortable relationship with money.” Staff who are empowered to take control of their finances are aware of where their money goes each month, are able to plan and stick to a budget, they have a financial plan, and they meet their financial obligations. Your employees will experience a strong sense of wellness and health; spend more time focusing on their jobs and become more productive and reach their highest potential.
“Empower Your People to achieve Financial Wellbeing”
“It’s a necessary business investment.”
Author: Cynthia Tsumake – Sales & Marketing Manger with S.C.I. Training (Pty) Ltd. © S.C.I. Training run financial wellness and debt counselling programmes in Botswana. For help and information contact them on 3180243 or 72309718 or leche@wellness.co.bw
*Names in this article have been changed