In a recent survey, 61% of employees in the US said that they would rather not wait for their scheduled payday to access earned wages. Seventy-four percent of employees also said that they would prefer to work for an employer that offers financial planning tools.
As the business world moves forward post-COVID, Earned Wage Access (EWA) is already becoming a part of the employment landscape. More and more businesses worldwide have started to introduce on-demand pay platforms for their employees and several top tech firms have led the way in developing new solutions.
Because of this, selecting the best earned wage access partner for your program can be a difficult decision. Who do you partner with? Are they offering a better package? Will your people be better off financially?
Focus on partners that focus on financial well-being
One important area of consideration when selecting the best earned wage access partner for your company or clients’ needs is financial well-being.
Financial well-being, simply put, relates to whether an individual has a sense of security in their ability to pay expenses. If they can pay their bills on time and are in control of their day-to-day finances, they are better off than many. A person who can work without any financial worries hanging over their head is becoming a rarity in the US; 78% of the US population is self-described as living paycheck-to-paycheck.
While increasing financial well-being is the claimed goal of earned wage access platforms, generally, many platforms miss the mark. Some platforms have been found to charge extra fees to users trying to access their money, which can seriously impact their ability to save. Others, fortunately, have offered a low-to-no-cost approach which directly opposes this practice and provides extra tools to help employees year-round.
They generally charge a small fee to the company introducing the platform rather than the individual user, which makes for a fantastic system overall.
Look for a program that goes the extra mile
As financial well-being is clearly crucial for an earned wage access user, money management also must be a goal. With this in mind, comprehensive budgeting tools have been introduced by a few top earned wage access developers aimed at building an engaged workforce that can plan ahead and reduce debt-related stress.
Some have coupled their on-demand pay function with a budgeting function that alerts users when they are spending unusual amounts and flags potentially fraudulent activity when it occurs. Having access to these tools could be the difference between falling into debt or remaining financially healthy.
Carefully evaluate the cost and integration
When choosing an earned wage access program, ask yourself if your provider is offering the following:
- An easy integration to existing operations
- A low cost solution for the employer and employee
- An easy integration with time and attendance and payroll platforms for the employer
- An easy program set-up
- Risk controls and withdrawal limits
- An easy activation for employees and an app that shows earned wages available to them
- Funds disbursement options: payroll card, direct deposit
If you are interested in learning more about AnyDay and discussing how an earned wage access solution can benefit your organization, contact us today!