May 14, 2020

Total Rewards COVID-19 Recording: BiC Graphic's Barbie Winterbottom 5-14-20

In response to the rapidly developing coronavirus outbreak and its unprecedented impact to business and employers, i4cp has launched a series of weekly standing calls specific to Total Rewards leadership roles. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has severely tested the well-being of employees everywhere. In addition to the physical and mental toll the coronavirus has taken, many workers are feeling a financial strain as well. The role that financial health plays in employees’ overall well-being was the main topic of discussion for the May 14, 2020 meeting of i4cp’s Total Rewards Action – COVID-19 Coronavirus Response call, where total rewards leaders from companies such as BIG Graphic North America, Genentech, Elkay Manufacturing and many more shared their strategies for helping employees navigate the financial challenges they face as a result of COVID-19, and how they plan to emphasize financial health as part of their broader employee well-being initiatives going forward.

Some highlights:

  • Organizations are emphasizing employee financial health as part of their overall approach to employee well-being, as evidenced by the results of our first instant poll. When asked to gauge the level of priority their companies are placing on financial well-being, 56% said their organizations are making it a priority as part of their strategy related to overall employee health. Another 19% said it is a “high priority” within their organizations.
  • That investment in financial well-being, and overall employee well-being, figures to continue. The recently published i4cp report, Next Practices in Holistic Well-Being: The Performance Advantage, gathered data from more than 550 organizations, and found that four in 10 organizations invest up to 10% of their compensation and benefits budgets each year in employee well-being, and plan to increase that spend in the near term. The group discussed this data point on today’s call, with many organizations agreeing that well-being will be a key part of their compensation and benefits budgets going forward.
  • The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the need to provide tools and resources to aid employees in maintaining their financial health. Today’s guest speaker, Barbie Winterbottom, chief people officer at BIC Graphic North America, discussed this in a Q&A, where she shared what BIC is offering employees, such as on-demand pay benefits to help employees navigate financial crises. Winterbottom also stressed the value of such benefits as a recruitment and retention tool, and the importance of communicating the availability of these resources to employees, and sharing the accountability for employee well-being.
  • COVID-19 has also changed the degree of emphasis organizations are putting on employee financial health, to some extent. Today’s second instant poll posed this question, with 33% saying the pandemic has changed COVID-19 has increased their company’s focus on employee financial well-being to “a moderate extent.” Another 25% said the pandemic has altered the degree to which their organization stresses financial health to a “low extent,” and 22% saying their companies have changed to “a high extent.”

In addition to this recording, please see these resources: