Helping employees save for emergencies can improve workplace productivity, according to the results of a new study by the AARP.
“The research suggests that by facilitating emergency savings as an integral part of financial wellness benefits, employers may not only improve employee financial security but also increase workplace productivity and enhance employee retention,” the AARP said in an article published in conjunction with the study results.
The research used data from the Understanding America Study, a probability-based internet panel that longitudinally tracks a representative sample of more than 13,000 US adults. The AARP sample is composed of respondents who completed two surveys that were fielded in April and May 2022 and April 2023.
“Employer-sponsored emergency savings programs are a critical intervention that will benefit all Americans,” the authors noted.
Some companies, including Amazon, Delta Airlines and Humana, have started to offer a financial wellness benefit aimed at helping workers build up emergency savings through payroll deductions, according to the AARP.
“Saving for emergencies is strongly related to both job satisfaction and job turnover,” according to the authors.
Data from 2023 show that saving for emergencies was associated with a 7% increase in self-assessed superior job performance and a 16% increase in the likelihood of someone receiving a raise or promotion. The study also noted that emergency savings are associated with higher levels of job satisfaction and lower levels of employee turnover.
There was little correlation between emergency savings-related behavior and the number of paid time off days taken by a worker.
The study found that the correlation between saving for emergencies and productivity is more significant among employees in white-collar industries compared with those in blue-collar industries. The authors cautioned, however, that blue-collar workers represented a smaller sample size in the survey and, therefore, the data “should be taken with caution.”
