By Alex McMillan, Founder and CEO, Seedli · September 2026
Most employee wellbeing programs cover the body and the mind. There’s an employee assistance line, a flu shot, maybe a step challenge and a mental health day. Money usually isn’t on the list, even though it’s the thing keeping a lot of staff up at night.
This guide is for HR and people-and-culture teams who want to add money to their wellbeing program without turning it into a sales pitch. It covers what the research says, eight ideas you can run, what to avoid, and how to pick a provider.
Why money belongs in your wellbeing program
The numbers are hard to ignore:
- 63% of 3,598 employees surveyed across Australia and New Zealand are “financially unwell”, according to Gallagher’s Workplace Wellbeing Index: Financial Edition (reported by HRD, September 2026). More than a quarter say money worries regularly distract them at work, and one in three come to work sick because they can’t afford a day off.
- 88% of moderately or severely financially stressed Australians say their finances affect their productivity at work (AMP Financial Wellness Report, 2024).
- Only 6% of Australian employees say they get financial education from their employer (Aon Employee Sentiment Study, 2025).
- In the June 2026 quarter, stressed mortgage households in Australia’s 80 hardest-hit postcodes rose about 14% in three months, to roughly 421,700 (OurTop10 Mortgage Stress Report, with Digital Finance Analytics).
That last one matters for employers. The households under the most pressure in OurTop10’s data aren’t unemployed. They’re recent first home buyers, young families and outer-suburban households, many on good incomes that no longer stretch far enough. In other words, people who are at work every day.
What a workplace wellbeing program usually includes
A typical Australian program has some mix of an employee assistance program (EAP), flexible work, mental health leave, fitness or health checks, and social events. Those all help. But an EAP counsellor can talk someone through the stress of a mortgage without being able to explain the mortgage itself. That’s the gap a financial session fills.
8 staff wellbeing ideas that deal with money
1. A lunch-and-learn on home loans and interest rates
For most staff with a mortgage, it’s the biggest bill they pay. Sixty minutes on how to read a loan statement, what the RBA’s decisions do to repayments, and when a refinance is worth the paperwork will land with almost any group.
2. A budgeting session people will actually use
Skip the “track every coffee” lecture. Show one simple system and leave people with a template. Our free budget planner works well as the take-home.
3. A first home buyer session for younger staff
Graduates and staff in their twenties and thirties want to know what a bank will lend on their salary, how the government deposit schemes work, and how long saving will take. A borrowing power calculator in the room makes it real.
4. A super check-in
Most people don’t know what their super is invested in or what they pay in fees. A session that walks through reading a super statement is quick, useful and never goes out of date.
5. Debt and credit, without judgement
Credit cards, car loans and buy-now-pay-later all show up on a credit report and affect what a lender will offer later. Staff rarely hear this explained plainly.
6. An anonymous question box
Collect questions before a session and let presenters answer them in the room. People ask what they’d never raise in front of their manager, and the questions tell you where your staff are actually struggling.
7. Put free financial counselling in front of staff
Staff in serious trouble need a financial counsellor, not a workshop. The National Debt Helpline (1800 007 007) is free. Put the number on the intranet and in the session handout, next to your EAP details.
8. Explain the benefits you already offer
Salary packaging, novated leases and extra super contributions are often under-used simply because nobody explained them. Ask payroll to join a session for ten minutes.
What to avoid
- Sales dressed up as education. If the presenter ends with a product or a sign-up sheet, staff notice and trust drops. Ask up front whether anything will be sold.
- Personal advice in a group setting. General education is fine. Telling individuals what to do with their money is financial advice and needs the right licence. A good presenter knows where that line is and refers people on.
- One webinar and done. A single session with no follow-up fades within weeks. A short series, or one session plus a way to ask follow-up questions, sticks.
How to choose a provider
Ask these five questions before you book anyone:
- Who presents, and what do they do for a living the rest of the week?
- Will anything be sold, or will staff details be collected?
- Can we pick the topics and see the slides beforehand?
- What do staff take away, and can they ask follow-up questions privately?
- What do we get back, such as attendance and the (anonymous) questions asked?
“Super is the one investment almost every employee owns and almost nobody reads. Twenty minutes on fees and investment options can be worth tens of thousands of dollars by retirement.”
Alex McMillan, Founder and CEO, Seedli
Where to start
Pick one topic your staff keep raising and run a single lunch-hour session. Collect the anonymous questions, then use them to decide whether a longer series is worth it.
If you’d rather have it run for you, OurTop10’s Workplace Financial Wellbeing Program puts a mortgage broker, a buyers agent and a financial planner in front of your staff. It’s education only, with no product pitches. The 60-second quiz below recommends a format and topics for your team.
Sources
- Gallagher, Workplace Wellbeing Index: Financial Edition, as reported by Human Resources Director, September 2026
- AMP Financial Wellness Report 2024 and Aon 2025 Employee Sentiment Study, as summarised by Aon Insights
- OurTop10 Mortgage Stress Report, June 2026 quarter, with Digital Finance Analytics
This article is general information only and isn’t financial advice.