Cost-of-living crisis damaging workers’ productivity

More than half of workers (54%) who have experienced money worries over the past 12 months say financial stress has affected their productivity.

This rises to 61% among workers under the age of 35, with men more likely than women to see a negative impact on their performance, at 63% compared to 50%.

The findings from research carried out by HR and payroll specialist Zellis revealed over three quarters of workers (77%) have suffered from money worries during the past year. This rises to 83% among under 35s.

How are money worries affecting work performance?

Of those with money worries, 76% say they can point to at least one way financial anxiety has negatively impacted their work:

• 45% say they have experienced sleepless nights leaving them feeling tired and sluggish
• 33% say they have been unable to concentrate
• 17% say they have made more errors
• 14% say they have struggled to communicate effectively

Other effects of the cost-of-living crisis

The research by Zellis also found an increasing number of workers are now carefully checking their payslips – 56% compared to 43% in 2022.

Despite this:

• 43% admit they wouldn’t be able to spot an error with their tax code
• 39% wouldn’t know if there was a problem with their pension contribution
• about 20% wouldn’t be confident identifying a mistake in their gross or net pay

If you're unsure about anything on your payslip, speak to someone from your HR department. You can also take a look at our guide on how to check and understand your tax code.

Productive workers are happy workers

Commenting on the research, Gethin Nadin from Zellis said:

 “Performance is important to wellbeing, with employees getting a sense of purpose and belonging at work by being successful.”

If money worries are stressing you out

We’re here to help you with your money worries, so you can live more and stress less.

For support with everything from better budgeting to checking you’re getting all the benefits you should be to advice on dealing with debt, get in touch.

You can access our advice online 24/7 or over the phone seven days a week during our office hours.