Financial Literacy: Increasingly An Employee Requested Benefit.

Almost two-thirds of Americans report having serious financial problems (Kaiser Family Foundation, April 2008). The problems noted included: paying for gas, getting a job raise, paying for rent or mortgage, health care related costs, food costs, credit card debt and losses due to the stock market declines. Now, more than ever, financial literacy presentations and training in the workplace is understood to help alleviate employee stress and increase loyalty. In fact, survey results have documented that more employees are taking advantage of workplace financial counseling, debt management advice, and even asking for advances on their pay. Beyond the market or economic conditions impacting the country’s workers, psychological factors placed as a strong third factor in affecting employees in the form of impulse buying, gambling, and responding to advertising sales inducements. Counseling professionals have long recognized the connection between mental health and personal financial success. Without financial stability and some increases at the lower economic levels, family stress occurs to the detriment of the individual worker.


To get a jump on the coming year’s holiday expenses, consider using a Holiday Expense Budget worksheet. Log on to http://www.betterbudgeting.com/ to see a Holiday expense worksheet.

While some adhere to the notion that the word budgeting has negative connotations, consider replacing it with spending plan.

AceMoney Lite 4.11 – Get a free budget tracking software program that helps you organize and track spending, build budgets, trace investment performance, and setup and printout payment reminders. Download it on http://www.cnet.com/ .

Big purchases can be intimidating and buying a car can test the best financial plans of any family. Checkout the auto loan calculator .