According to James Kinney an instructor for the Heartland Institute for Financial Education, thirty million workers in America-one in four-are seriously financially distressed and dissatisfied with their personal financial situations.”
Leading academic scholars from 10 universities and five business experts in personal finance have issued this unprecedented and definitive joint report of new findings on the levels of financial distress and dissatisfaction among workers in America. Sixteen additional experts from the business world joined to give support to the findings.
“It’s an ugly situation for employers when more and more of their workers are distressed about their personal finances and running hard just to keep their heads above water financially,” says Garman, professor emeritus, Virginia Tech University. Why? The reason is that many workers who struggle with money matters are less productive at their place of employment because of their financial distress. Depending upon their place of employment, 30% to 80% of financially distressed workers spend time at work worrying about personal finances and dealing with financial issues instead of working Although most working adults are satisfied with their personal finances and are not financially distressed, a substantial minority is having considerable trouble. They are experiencing more than moderate degrees of distress about their personal finances; instead they report “high” to “overwhelming” levels of financial distress.
They are dissatisfied with their financial situation and worry about money, debt and bills. They usually are insecure about their personal finances for retirement. They worry about having enough money to live on once they retire. Often, they lack confidence about their abilities to manage personal finances. Many do not even have hope that they might one day be able to catch up financially. People at all income levels in society experience distress about financial matters.
A large proportion of those who are financially distressed, 40% to 50%, report that their health is directly impacted negatively by their financial worries and problems. “Health problems caused by financial distress cost employers big money,” says Garman. Further, “These findings should motivate employers to offer employees access to resources, counseling and advice to decrease their stress about money matters and improve their financial lives.”
