Earned wage access has become a popular benefit for companies that traditionally have payrolls with low-wage workers. But with so much changing because of COVID-19, EWA also makes sense to offer higher-wage and middle-class workers.
EWA’s popularity has taken off because employees can receive the money they’ve already earned quickly rather than wait for a standard paycheck. That can make a big difference in their life, especially in emergencies.
The Benefits of Earned Wage Access
COVID has impacted workers across the board. For example, white-collar and middle-class workers have been furloughed for weeks at a time, suffered a permanent layoff, had their salaries frozen or cut, and dealt with other financial setbacks during the pandemic.
It makes sense that companies who want to take a proactive approach to help employees during the pandemic should provide earned wage access to employees. EWA, or on-demand pay, is an opportunity for those employees to deal with any financial issues they face rather than accumulating late fees or other damage.
If companies are hiring, EWA also can help attract employees. The fact employees can access their pay earlier has been a recruiting tool for those who offer it.
How EWA Helps High-Income and Middle-Income Workers
It’s a possibility that the employees being onboarded today may be having problems paying rent or buying groceries no matter how much they made in the past.
According to the Pew Research Center, 5 percent of high-income earners and 19 percent of middle-income earners had trouble paying bills during the pandemic, according to a September 2020 report. The financial issues for middle-class workers included having 12 percent report they received food from a food bank and 11 percent reporting they had trouble paying their mortgage.
While low-wage workers suffered tremendously from COVID’s impact on the economy, the Pew report shows they were not the only group who did so.
Earned wage access can make a difference in a way that many other benefits cannot. Rather than onboard your employees and make them wait anywhere from two weeks or more for a check, EWA can provide them with instant relief. Those employees will appreciate the benefit.
