Page 24 - PWM2024_APRIL EBOOK

BETTER BUSINESS

Offering a

helping hand

Not for decades have we all been under so much pres-
sure financially. Rising energy bills, relatively high
mortgage rates, food prices on the increase, and to
cap it all, a tax burden that is at a 70-year peak –
there is real pain being felt, by Adam Bernstein
E sive challenges, maybe a closure, and
where an organisation is facing mas-
mployees are understand-
ably desperate for more
they’re not able to get the help to
pay. But it shouldn’t be for-
their staff as quickly as they ought or
gotten that employers are
having a tough time of it all
too. Which all begs the would like.”
question, how can firms help staff Start with pay
weather the storm? Charles Cotton, reward and per-
Some businesses are being very formance adviser for the CIPD,
proactive. Mailing house thinks that a general review of pay
CustomerKEKT (formerly and benefits will go some way in giv-
MetroMail), for example, has imple- ing employees what they need rather
mented a bumper support package: than what was useful five years ago.
all of the Seaham, County Durham- He says that somehow “boosting
based firm’s workers got a two-stage incomes is perhaps the most obvious
£1,000 payment, split between their way in which employers can support
September 2022 and February 2023 financial wellbeing and will likely climate.”
pay. Additionally, the company’s have the most immediate impact.” Regardless, Nudds reckons that organisations would nevertheless bene-
annual pay review was brought for- For the BPIF, Anna Nudds, head of fit by gaining an “understanding of each employee’s unique situation and
ward from February 2023 – its new HR, agrees, commenting that “it is a offering robust advice and help wherever possible”. This, she says, can be
financial year – to December 2022, given that the first port of call for an achieved with “an employee assistance programme – one that provides
meaning staff received a 5% increase employee, would be ‘can I have a pay financial advice as well as assistance for people experiencing stress as a
in their base pay two months early. rise please’”. However, she knows result of the financial pressures”.
The company said that this pack- that with many organisations suffer- Cotton takes the thinking further and says that “the current cost-of-liv-
age equated to an average salary ing too, an increase to the wages bill ing crisis is encouraging employers to explore how their benefits package
increase of 11% for the majority of its is not always an option. Overtime is can be used to help support employees and reduce the risk of workers fall-
staff. one answer. With money worries at ing into poverty”. He draws specific attention to those perks that help off-
And there is help to found outside the forefront of many people’s set the cost of housing, travel, and childcare as being the most useful to
individual businesses too. The minds, Toyah Marshall, principal those on the lowest incomes.
Printing Charity’s free, confidential employment law advisor and solici- As to how such a review should be conducted, Cotton says that existing
helpline provides practical, emo- tor at WorkNest points to a recent HR data could be utilised. In particular, he says employers could consider
tional, and financial support 365 days survey in Printweek stablemate HR markers such as absence levels, disciplinary cases, requests for financial
a year to people working in the sector magazine and says: “Overtime is the support, social media comments, the take-up of staff benefits, employee
and their immediate family mem- most in-demand work perk, followed productivity levels, and discussions with employee representatives. He
bers. by flexible working hours and com- adds: “Employers can use an existing staff survey to ask questions about
Charity CEO Neil Lovell advises pany-funded retirement plans. With employee financial wellbeing, or commission a specific questionnaire to
printers looking to ramp up their all three directly benefiting employ- explore this issue.” In his mind the benefit of doing this is that it could help
mental health support to implement ees financially, it seems clear that employers discover which employees are most at risk and what support
something sooner rather than later. these are the sorts of incentives makes most sense.
He says: “We have lots of examples of employees value most in the current Procedurally, Marshall believes that there are six steps needed to con-

24 PrintWeek MENA April 2024 www.printweekmena.com