The Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS) has noted that debt problems can lead to emotional issues, which may be a factor in employee stress.
Una Farrell, spokeswoman for the financial advice charity, called for more research to be carried out regarding the link between money difficulties and mental health.
In her view, this type of problem has always been around, but the recession has brought it to the fore.
She explained that plenty of people who go to the CCCS for money advice suffer from emotional problems.
Ms Farrell said: “There have always been people who have come to us who are very distressed, but it is time now to do something about it.”
The CCCS representative suggested the two problems will often go “hand in hand”.
Managers in HR or recruitment wishing to find out more about the causes of anxiety among workers could attend the Stress Prevention & Mental Wellbeing Forum 2011 on April 7th next year.
Posted by Ross George
This article is very timely and it should make many employers consider what they can do to alleviate that form of stress (apart from doubling someones pay of course!). A few low-cost and no-cost suggestions can make the difference between an employee coping and not, with the resultant saving in sickness absences, absenteeism, resignations and recruitment.
Employers can look at their policies regarding advances in wages/salary for example – with commercial lenders offering ‘payday loans’ at over 2,000% APR (that is not a misprint) and loan sharks offering the same or similar (with added violence) an employer who can be occasionally flexible when there is too much month left at the end of the money could genuinely help an employee in crisis. Once the crisis is past (or to stop it happening), encourage staff to join local credit unions and make use of the Financial Service Authorities “Money Made Clear” service. This can include free workplace lunchtime seminars for staff. Employers can also make sure that staff are signposted towards state benefits such as Working Tax Credit.
Too often, employers have looked at employee welfare in very limited and traditional ways – given the prevalence of personal debt, the impact of the recession and the scaling-back of the welfare state, it may be time for employers to provide a small amount of support, at almost no cost, which could reap big rewards.
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