OLYMPIA – The Washington State Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) recognizes the role financial wellness plays in the overall health of America’s workforce. “Public Service Recognition Week is a time to honor our Washington State employees and to support them,” Governor Jay Inslee said. “Just as the Washington Smart Health Program supports the wellness of our state workforce, financial fitness can be equally as important in ensuring overall wellness for our employees and their families.”
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s report on “Financial Wellness At Work” indicates: “Seven out of ten American workers say financial stress is their most common cause of stress, and almost half (48%) say they find dealing with their financial situation stressful.” Whether an employee’s stress is from struggling to pay for their child’s college expenses, medical debt, or an expensive emergency like a new roof for the house, financial stress doesn't always stay at home. Financial stress often comes in to work with employees, resulting in less productivity, less satisfaction on the job, and often results in the employee needing to take time off from work to take care of their financial matters. This stress, and the resulting impacts, creates a drain on employees – and their employers.
Luckily, in addition to local organization workshops, agency lunch-and-learns and other workplace programs, Washington State Employees have an online resource at their fingertips to help them with money management, DFI’s Financial Education Clearinghouse https://dfi.wa.gov/financial-education/
“We recognize the important role that financial wellness plays in the overall productivity of our workforce,” DFI Director Gloria Papiez said. “When we understand how to make sound financial decisions and avoid financial fraud, we are better able to protect ourselves, our families and our retirement — and our state as a whole is stronger. That’s why DFI created the Financial Education Clearinghouse and the checklist.”
DFI’s Financial Education Clearinghouse www.dfi.wa.gov/financial-education provides access to resources - from budgeting and saving, credit and debt, to health care and mortgages, and has a special section on avoiding scams – in a one-stop-shop website.
For more information about DFI outreach, workshops, partners, programs and information, visit www.dfi.wa.gov/financial-education/ and follow us on Twitter @DFIConsumers and @FinEd4All, and Facebook www.facebook.com/wadfi.