Survey Shows 62% of Workers Face Serious Financial Anxieties

While many employees feel a strong sense of long-term “retirement confidence,” anxiety around near-term finances is growing and impacting workplace productivity. Four-in-five respondents say it’s important that their employer provides them with strong financial benefits.

That’s according to the 2024 Retirement Readiness Report from Betterment at Work, a provider of modern, scalable 401(k)s for growing businesses. This is the fourth installment of its annual survey on the state of retirement readiness and financial benefits across the U.S. workforce.

Key findings from Betterment at Work’s 2024 Retirement Readiness Report include:

• Retirement confidence and savings are up, but there is still uncertainty:
  • 79% state they have access to a 401(k), and 89% of those are contributing to it — up from 83% in 2023, and just 70% in 2022.
  • 72% feel at least somewhat confident that they’ll be able to save enough to support themselves in retirement.
  • However, 56% expect they’ll need at least $500k saved to retire comfortably, yet only 38% actually expect to have that much saved.
• Financial anxiety is impacting workplace productivity:
  • 62% report facing moderate to significant financial anxiety — with inflation (62%), credit card debt (34%), and housing costs (31%) ranking as the top three financial stressors.
  • 66% of Gen Z and 57% of Millennials report that financial anxiety impacts their ability to work “all” or “most” of the time, compared to 41% of Gen X and 28% of Boomers.
• Benefits are a key contributor to workplace engagement:
  • 57% say they would be enticed to leave their job if a prospective employer offered better benefits than their current employer.
  • Workers at smaller companies (61%) would be more likely to jump ship for better financial benefits, compared to 58% and 53% of workers at midsize and large businesses.
  • Top financial benefits ranked most important to financial wellbeing: a 401(k) plan (70%), 401(k) matching program (66%), and employer-sponsored emergency fund (36%).

“Our survey highlights a critical gap: while employees feel hopeful about their long-term finances, short-term anxieties drive poor decision-making and reduce productivity at work,” said Sarah Levy, CEO of Betterment. “Employers are positioned to close this gap with benefits and education that equip employees to manage financial challenges and foster financial confidence.”

Read or download the full report here.