“What does the price of eggs have to do with annual enrollment?” Mercer asked that question recently, and the answer is: more than you might think.
With 70% of employees considered not financially healthy, many of your employees are currently struggling with the cost of housing, groceries, and everyday essentials. As open enrollment season approaches, Mercer warns that employers will see the ripple effect of inflation and economic uncertainty play out in the benefits choices employees make, predicting that many will default to the cheapest healthcare plan or skip voluntary benefits entirely.
When employees start making these trade-offs because they’re struggling financially, your organization will pay for it in the form of higher healthcare costs, increased turnover, and lower benefits engagement.
But it’s not too late to take action.
Read on to learn how you can help employees navigate economic uncertainty and find value from their benefits – and why the type of financial wellbeing support your offer plays a key role in both.
Recognize that financial stress isn’t just a low-income issue
It’s a mistake to think financial stress is only a challenge for lower-wage workers. While Bank of America’s 2025 Employee Financial Wellness in America report shows that 81% of lower-income employees live paycheck to paycheck, the reality is broader. Nearly one in three higher earners has less than a month of savings, and almost half carry credit card debt from month to month.
That kind of pressure affects employees at every income level. Even those earning six figures may put off preventive care, ration medications, or choose the lowest-cost benefits just to keep more cash in their pockets.
Unless employees also have support to address their everyday money problems, even the most comprehensive benefits programs won’t move the needle on retention or be seen as truly valuable. Gallagher’s research underscores this: 63% of employees say they would leave their job for better benefits.
Know that policy changes are raising the stakes
Rising prices aren’t the only pressure employees face. Recent policy shifts will reduce support from programs including Medicaid, Medicare, SNAP, and CHIP, which could leave millions of frontline workers without the financial safety nets they rely on.
Experts predict this could mean some employers see higher enrollment volumes if more employees and dependents turn to employer-sponsored plans; others may go without any type of medical coverage. In either case, the result is greater cost exposure and more confusion and financial stress for employees.
Focus on these key areas to respond
The good news: Employers don’t need to overhaul their entire benefits strategy to get ahead of these challenges. Instead, offer the right type of financial wellbeing support to make all of your benefits more relevant, accessible, and impactful for employees. Here are three key areas to focus on.
1. Understand how financial stress shapes benefit choices
When employees are worried about paying for groceries, gas, or rent, they’re not thinking strategically about what type of medical insurance may be the best fit for their family’s needs. Instead, they may decide based on how much money choosing that benefit will reduce each paycheck.
Prioritize financial wellbeing support that not only helps employees understand their benefits, but also connects them with real solutions that address and reduce their everyday financial struggles, so they can choose the benefits they really need.
2. Prioritize integration, not just offerings
Gallagher found that 55% of employees don’t understand their benefits and notes that participation suffers when employers simply “put programs out there” and hope employees find them.
Don’t just expand your offerings; bridge them with personalized financial health support that helps employees connect the dots between financial challenges and available benefits — whether that’s healthcare, hardship funds, legal aid, or mental health services. Without this integration, your investment can’t reach its full potential.
That’s part of the reason Brightside Financial Assistants help employees navigate to all relevant benefits for their circumstances – before, during, and after open enrollment.
3. Measure what really matters
It’s easy to think success during annual enrollment comes down to participation rates or how many employees click into a benefits portal. But those numbers don’t tell you whether employees are actually making the right choices for their needs.
A better measure is whether employees feel confident navigating their options and are selecting benefits that protect their health and financial stability — not just the cheapest plan available. When you think beyond financial wellness and offer personalized support that meets employees where they are and helps them overcome their real money challenges and make informed decisions, you’ll see stronger engagement, healthier employees, and lower cost exposure down the line.
Financial health is at the center of nearly every benefit you offer
When your financial benefits are built to help employees address all of their financial needs, including urgent housing situations, and struggles with everyday expenses, bills, and debt, they’re better positioned to be able to choose and use all of the other benefits that best support their lives.
In turn, they feel less financially stressed, and empowered to show up to work as their best selves – and you’ll see lower healthcare costs, higher retention, and increased productivity.
Learn more about Brightside and why large employers including Amazon and Unum support their employees with Financial Care before, during, and after open enrollment.