By Chinonyerem Emmanuel
As millions of Americans struggle to keep pace with the relentlessly rising cost of living, spanning housing, groceries, utilities and other everyday essentials, their financial anxiety is no longer confined to kitchen tables and bank statements. It’s increasingly showing up at work. And employers are paying attention.
In 2025, concern about employees’ financial wellbeing reached its highest level on record. Nearly half of employers (48%) rated their level of concern at a 9 or 10 on a 10-point scale, according to new research from the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI).
That marks a steady rise from 43% in 2024 and 39% in 2023. To put the shift in perspective, just 22% of employers expressed that level of concern in 2019, the year before the Covid-19 pandemic reshaped both the economy and the workplace.
What’s changed? According to Jake Spiegel, senior research associate at EBRI, employers’ focus has moved dramatically over the past few years.
“Since 2022, we’ve seen employers shift away from retirement as the top area of concern toward more day-to-day cost-of-living issues,” Spiegel said. “Budgeting, savings, and basic financial stability have taken center stage.”
Employees, he added, are still “feeling the squeeze from above-trend inflation,” even as headline inflation numbers have cooled.
Living Paycheck to Paycheck in a Higher-Price World
Inflation may have eased to an annual rate of 2.7%, down sharply from its 9.1% peak in June 2022. But that doesn’t erase the reality that overall prices have risen more than 25% since 2020, based on the consumer price index. For many households, that cumulative increase has fundamentally reshaped their budgets.
The result: financial fragility is widespread. A 2025 Bank of America survey of nearly 90,000 401(k) plan participants found that 57% of employees are living paycheck to paycheck. While wages have outpaced inflation over the past two years, that progress followed a painful stretch in 2021 and 2022 when incomes failed to keep up with soaring prices.
Employers are increasingly aware that financial stress doesn’t stop at the office door. It can fuel absenteeism, reduce productivity, and heighten dissatisfaction at work. That’s why many companies are stepping up efforts to support employees’ financial health, not just as a benefit, but as a business necessity.
Financial Wellness Programs: More Common, Less Convincing?
In 2025, more than two-thirds of employers (70%) reported offering some form of financial wellness initiative, up from 59% the year before, according to EBRI. The study surveyed 406 benefits decision-makers at companies with at least 500 employees that either offer or are considering financial wellness programs.
Yet despite the growth in offerings, confidence in their effectiveness is slipping. Only 43% of employers said their programs are making a “large impact,” down sharply from 60% in 2024 and 73% in 2023.
That disconnect may stem from employee feedback. “We see evidence in our other surveys that employees tend to be less rosy than employers when it comes to rating the effectiveness of benefits,” Spiegel noted. In other words, what looks good on paper doesn’t always translate into meaningful relief for workers.
Inside Today’s Financial Wellness Playbook
Financial wellness programs vary widely by company. Some focus on immediate cash-flow relief, offering tools such as payroll-advance programs, short-term loans through third-party providers, or access to emergency savings, either via dedicated accounts or through 401(k) loans and hardship withdrawals.
Others emphasize education, providing seminars or webinars on topics like budgeting, investing, debt management, or retirement planning.
Access to professional guidance is also becoming more common. About 68% of employers now offer access to financial advisors, while 46% provide access to financial coaches. In many cases, companies subsidize some or all of the cost, making one-on-one guidance more affordable for workers.
That personal touch can be critical, said certified financial planner Uchechi Kalu, founder of Greenlight Financial Planning in Los Angeles.
“Financial wellness programs with one-on-one sessions are a strategic way to provide more access to professionals who specialize in financial guidance,” Kalu said.
She works with a nonprofit in Chicago that allows employees to meet with her twice a year via video calls, covering whatever financial challenges they’re facing. With the employer subsidizing half the cost, employees pay $118 per session, a price point Kalu says makes a real difference in participation.
Her conversations span everything from budgeting and investing to home buying, travel planning, and navigating major life transitions.
“The one-on-ones are when you reach people at critical moments,” Kalu said. “That’s where you can actually help them move forward on their financial journey.”
As the cost-of-living crisis continues to reshape household finances, employers are learning that financial wellness is no longer a “nice to have”. It’s a frontline issue, one that directly affects morale, performance, and retention. The challenge ahead isn’t just offering more programs, but designing ones that truly meet workers where they are, in an economy that still feels painfully expensive.
Source: CNBC
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