The Policy Liaison Group on Workplace Wellbeing

💷 Money is the top concern for retail workers in 2025, with employers rushing to put support in place A new report, published by the Financial Wellbeing Forum and supported by Wagestream and the Retail Trust, finds a staggering 92% of retail workers think the cost of living crisis “will never end”- even higher than the UK average of 88%. In addition to short-term reactions to the current Cost of Living Crisis, researchers urge employers to address the broader ‘Cost of Life’ by tackling financial stress more proactively. This means offering a mix of long-term solutions such as savings schemes and coaching, alongside immediate support such as debt helplines and discounts. As a founding advisory board member of the PLG on Workplace Wellbeing, Wagestream has a strong track record in driving forward-thinking approaches to employee financial health. We look forward to working together further as the Group moves towards publishing the Employer Duty of Care Guidelines later this year. Read the full report below: https://lnkd.in/dWuaMY7W Wagestream, Emily Trant, Sophie Cuttiford, #CostOfLivingCrisis #FinancialWellbeing #EmployeeSupport #WorkplaceWellbeing #RetailIndustry

⚡This week, the PLG on Workplace Wellbeing held a roundtable in Parliament on mental health at the workplace. We were delighted to be joined by expert speakers Sarah McIntosh, Mental Health First Aid England; Simon Dixon, Royal Society for Public Health; Zosia Walecka, The British Psychological Society; and Kim Hoque, King's Business School. The discussion provided key insights on improving workplace mental health, reducing inequalities, and embedding wellbeing into business strategy. A clear message emerged: “People are not a cost — they are an investment”. The themes and insights from this and all our roundtables will shape the Employer Duty of Care Guidelines — a comprehensive framework offering best-practice guidance for UK employers and actionable recommendations for government policy. Developed by this PLG with input from many attendees, the guidelines will be published in late 2025 to help organisations enhance employee wellbeing and recognise those leading the way. 💡 Learn more by reading the full meeting summary below. Many thanks to Dr Rebecca Cooper MP and her team for facilitating the roundtable. Thank you also to our speakers, chair Gethin Nadin, advisory board members, and participants for contributing to the meeting. Emily Trant, Wagestream, Michelle Sutton ChMCIPPdip, FHEA 🟡🔴/🟢🔵, SUEZ UK, Maria Paviour, Wellbeing With Cari, Elisha Mans, Centrica, Shamira Graham, Onebright, WEALTH at work

Today we held the third roundtable of The Policy Liaison Group on Workplace Wellbeing in Westminster. Today our conversation was focussed on workplace #mentalhealth, a topic that will no doubt dominate these roundtables and play a key role in our creation of Employer Duty of Care Guidelines. Currently, employers in the UK have access to a wide array of wellbeing advice. Yet what is lacking are specific, tangible instructions from a wide variety of contributors — a reputable framework that enables employers to confidently prioritise the wellbeing of their workforce through evidence-based practices. The proposed guidelines would address this gap, establishing a public commitment by employers to foster a culture of wellbeing that promotes productivity, engagement, and health in the workplace. These guidelines we hope will create a robust framework that will provide best-practice guidance to UK employers while also offering actionable insights and recommendations for government policy. This discussion today was an opportunity to examine the role of government in incentivising employer-led prevention strategies, the balance between voluntary and regulated mental health policies, and the implications of Labour’s Make Work Pay Plan for workplace wellbeing. My gratitude to the Rt Hon Dr Rebecca Cooper and her team for facilitating the roundtable in Parliament today. As well as our guest from Westminster, Paul Richards, who joined us straight from the GB News studio. Thank you to our invited speakers: * Sarah McIntosh, Chief Executive of Mental Health First Aid England.  * Simon Dixon, Head of Policy and Influencing at Royal Society for Public Health * Zosia Walecka , Senior Policy and Public Affairs Adviser at the The British Psychological Society. * Kim Hoque, Professor of Human Resource Management and Vice Dean (People and Culture) at King's Business School Thank you to our attendees from Mitie , Bupa , Ocado Group , Serco , QBE Insurance , Kennedys , bp , Hays and others (I can't tag you all!). Thank you also to our founding board sponsors Wellbeing With Cari, Centrica, Onebright, SUEZ UK, Wagestream and WEALTH at work and the Secretariat team at College Green Group for their work in making today happen. It felt like we made great progress today. Thank you to all involved!

Financial wellbeing is more than just a personal concern - it’s a critical issue for the workplace and the wider economy. At our latest roundtable, we explored the UK workforce's state of financial wellbeing, with expert insights from Debi O'Donovan (Reward & Employee Benefits Association (REBA)), Jo Phillips (Nest Insight), and Brian Semple (Money and Mental Health). 💰 Those with under £1,000 in savings are nearly 3x more likely to report poor mental health. Employers can play a role in fostering financial resilience. 🏡 Housing stress has a real impact – 64% of employers cite rent costs as a major concern for their workforce. 🧠 Money & mental health are linked – 5.2 million people in the UK are struggling with both financial difficulties and mental health issues. 👔 To help employees start saving, the government can promote an opt-out approach to savings schemes. Nest Insight’s opt-out payroll autosave trials (2021-23) found the number of people saving increased by around 50%. Read the full key takeaways below. #FinancialWellbeing #WorkplaceWellbeing #CostOfLiving #EmployeeSupport #MentalHealthAtWork #FinancialResilience #EmployeeWellbeing #MoneyAndMentalHealth #WorkplaceCulture #FinancialInclusion #PayrollSavings #WellbeingAtWork #FutureOfWork

📍 Financial anxiety is hijacking productivity in the workplace - here’s how you can fix it A survey by Dayforce has revealed that money issues at home are bad for business, with the stress of financial burdens leading to employee absenteeism and disengagement. ❌ 42% of executives state that financial stress prevents employees from producing their best work. The good news is that financial support measures - such as education programmes and early access to wages - have been shown to mitigate these effects. ✅ The Employee Benefit Research Institute saw a 25% increase in productivity levels in employees taking part in financial well-being programmes. ✅ PwC also noted a 25% reduction in turnover among participants in similar programmes. The answer here is clear, financial wellbeing is not just an HR issue, it's a business issue, and it needs to be prioritised as such. At the Policy Liaison Group on Workplace Wellbeing, we acknowledge the challenges faced by both employees and businesses whose productivity is being impacted by financial anxieties, and that an employee-centred approach to tackling this is beneficial for everyone involved. We tackled this critical issue this week in our roundtable discussion on the cost of living crisis and financial resilience where we discussed the importance of strong employee financial education, and we look forward to sharing the key takeaways from this very soon! Read more about the role that businesses can play in managing financial wellbeing here: https://lnkd.in/d8z5Hk-7 #WorkplaceWellbeing #EmployeeHealth #FinancialWellbeing #Productivity

🚀 This morning, we were delighted to hold the Group’s second roundtable discussion, featuring outstanding guest speakers - Debi O'Donovan from the Reward & Employee Benefits Association (REBA), Jo Phillips from Nest Insight, and Brian Semple from Money and Mental Health. Against the backdrop of the government's announcement on disability benefit reforms, set to remove disability and incapacity benefits from hundreds of thousands of people by the 2029-30 financial year, prioritising financial resilience and inclusion has never been more critical. The discussion explored key policy challenges surrounding workplace savings and financial wellbeing initiatives, the complex relationship between money and mental health, and the need for better promotion of workplace financial wellbeing tools such as wage advance schemes and financial education. We look forward to integrating financial wellbeing strategies into national policies aimed at improving resilience and economic growth. Insights from this roundtable will also inform the PLG’s Employer Duty of Care Guidelines, set to be published later this year. Many thanks to our Chair Gethin Nadin, speakers, Advisory Board members and guest experts for contributing to this discussion. Emily Trant, Wagestream, Michelle Sutton ChMCIPPdip, FHEA 🟡🔴/🟢🔵, SUEZ UK, Jonathan Watts-Lay, WEALTH at work, Harriet Butcher, Centrica, Onebright, Wellbeing With Cari John Leavey, LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group), Idris Arshad, Asthma + Lung UK, Cleo Howie, AWE, Femi A., Standard Life UK, Ryan B., FinWELL Training #FinancialWellbeing #WorkplaceSavings #MoneyAndMentalHealth #EmployeeWellbeing #EconomicResilience #FinancialInclusion #EmployerDutyOfCare #WageAdvance #WorkplaceWellbeing

🌟 Labour’s call for a new social contract to build an inclusive and resilient workforce Ahead of our roundtable on financial resilience and inclusion, it's encouraging to see Labour MPs taking active steps to ensure the world of work is an appealing and rewarding prospect for everyone. As David Pinto-Duschinsky MP, who this week launched the new Get Britain Working Group in Parliament, put it: "Our welfare system is broken. We have a moral duty to reform it, putting work at its very heart. Everyone who can work deserves the security, dignity, and agency that employment provides." The backbench Labour group’s letter to Liz Kendall, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, calls for a new social contract, one built on opportunity, support, and the belief that work should empower, not hinder. It highlights that: 🔹 Nearly 3 million people are unable to work due to poor health. 🔹 Economic inactivity in the UK remains higher than pre-pandemic levels — the only G7 country where this is the case. 🔹 Disabled people face employment levels 30% lower than those without disabilities. 🔹 Over 1 in 8 young people (16-24) are not in education, employment, or training. The Get Britain Working Group is pushing for a welfare system that: ✅ Supports, rather than penalises, those seeking work. ✅ Provides tailored assistance for disabled people and those with health conditions. ✅ Restores dignity, security, and agency through meaningful employment. ✅ Builds pathways to opportunity for millions who are currently left behind. Our upcoming roundtable will explore how to support a financially resilient workforce that drives UK productivity and supports sustainable growth, and we look forward to welcoming David and his colleagues to future roundtables. #WorkplaceWellbeing #FinancialInclusion  #GetBritainWorking #PolicyForChange #EmployeeWellbeing Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)

🚨 Employment Rights Bill update: new amendments Today, the government introduced over 200 amendments to the Employment Rights Bill, following consultations with business groups, trade unions, and civil society. In the government's press release yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner calls it the “biggest upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation.” These changes aim to rebalance the employer-worker relationship, driving both economic growth and worker security. Key changes include: ✅ Agency worker protections: Agency workers are now covered by the ban on exploitative zero-hour contracts, ensuring fair contracts, reasonable shift notice, and compensation for last-minute cancellations. ✅ Statutory Sick Pay (SSP): Workers too ill to work will receive SSP or 80% of weekly pay (whichever is lower) without a three-day waiting period. Employees earning below £123/week will receive 80% of their average weekly earnings. ✅ Fire and rehire: The protective award for failing to consult on large-scale redundancies (20+ employees) doubles from 90 to 180 days, promoting fairer consultations. ✅ Trade union recognition reforms: The government is modernising union processes by streamlining recognition, enhancing transparency, and extending digital access. The ten-year requirement for political fund ballots will be abolished, and industrial action ballots will be extended from six to twelve months. While these amendments are welcomed by unions, some business groups express concerns over potential administrative burdens, particularly in sectors with flexible staffing like education and healthcare. 📌 What’s next? The amendments will be presented in the House of Commons next week during the Employment Rights Bill’s final stages. With the government's majority, these changes are likely to pass before moving to the House of Lords for further scrutiny. At the Policy Liaison Group on Workplace Wellbeing, we believe supporting employee wellbeing (mental, physical, and financial) is not only a moral imperative but also a business necessity. We will continue to engage with policymakers and stakeholders to support the effective implementation of these measures. #EmploymentRightsBill #WorkplaceWellbeing #EmployeeWellbeing #MakeWorkPay Read the full amendment paper here: https://lnkd.in/e9Ucu8MN

📈Investing in employee health isn’t just the right thing to do – it’s an economic necessity A new report from The Good Growth Foundation makes it clear: investing in physical and mental health is a top public priority for driving sustainable economic growth. 📌 56.6% of the public rank ‘investing in health’ as the most appealing strategy for growing the economy, on par with ‘creating more opportunities.’ 📌 More than 78% of businesses want action to improve workforce health, recognising that better wellbeing means stronger productivity and greater economic stability. The link is undeniable — when employees thrive, businesses and economies do too. Yet, with rising costs and ongoing workforce challenges, there’s an urgent need for policy solutions that prioritise workplace wellbeing. At the Policy Liaison Group on Workplace Wellbeing, we’re committed to working with policymakers and industry leaders to push for meaningful reforms. From enhancing mental health support to promoting financial resilience, investing in people isn’t just good for employees, it’s a long-term growth strategy. Read more about why putting health at the heart of growth policy matters: https://lnkd.in/dedFFgKM #WorkplaceWellbeing #EmployeeHealth #MentalHealth #PolicyInnovation #EconomicGrowth

📩 The Group is inviting submissions to inform the development of Employer Duty of Care Guidelines, scheduled for publication later this year This is an opportunity for businesses, wellbeing professionals, and individuals to contribute evidence-based insights that address the evolving challenges faced by workplaces. By focusing on practical solutions to present and measurable outcomes, we aim to bridge the gap between identified issues and actionable policy recommendations. Contributions will help ensure that wellbeing initiatives support not only employee health but also national priorities like boosting productivity, reducing NHS pressures, and increasing workforce participation. Contributions may include case studies, research, or policy suggestions. While not all contributors can attend roundtables, all submissions will inform our work. 📅 Please submit concise, evidence-based contributions (up to 1,500 words) by 4th of April using Google Forms - https://lnkd.in/dkQ5P-Mw #WorkplaceWellbeing #DutyOfCareGuidelines #WorkplaceHealth #EmployeeWellbeing #WorkplacePolicy #HRBestPractices #WellbeingAtWork #ProductivityBoost #SustainableWorkplaces #PolicyMaking, Gethin Nadin