Do managers need to worry about employees' financial stress? A review of two decades of research

Abstract

Personal finances are a growing concern for individuals, organizations, and policymakers. However, the academic literature has yet to agree on assessing this problem and its consequences in the workplace. Following a systematic review protocol, 136 empirical studies published in the last twenty years in distinct fields were analyzed, providing an integrated report on workplace outcomes of employees' financial stress. The results show that financial stress interferes in the workplace by lowering employee health, commitment, and performance and increasing work-family conflict and deviant behaviors. Despite using various expressions related to financial stress, the research concentrates on a few constructs, which present misalignments between definition and measurement. This underscores the need for more high-quality research on employees' financial stress in organizational settings. We have also proposed a typology of constructs, inviting further study and discussion in this vital area. If not adequately handled, the aggregated impact of financial stress may lower employee productivity, burden personnel management, and harm business effectiveness.