Because the UK’s cost-of-living disaster persists, staff are feeling the pressure. New analysis from LiveCareer exhibits that 40% of UK staff expertise monetary stress each week, and 18% expertise it day by day. When requested to share their main cash considerations, 75% of respondents cited inflation and the price of dwelling.
These findings, drawn from a survey of 1,000 UK staff in Could 2025, align with the financial scenario in Europe, the place earnings have fallen behind inflation throughout the previous 4 years.
Lagging wages, spending cutbacks and rising debt
Information revealed by the Home of Commons Library exhibits a 5.2% rise in common weekly earnings throughout the UK. Nonetheless, the bulk surveyed in LiveCareer’s analysis will not be seeing this uplift for themselves.
Solely 12% of UK staff imagine their pay packet has saved up with inflation. And for 39%, wages haven’t elevated in any respect.
Feeling the pinch, staff have been lowering outgoings to maintain afloat. For a big proportion (64%), this has concerned lowering discretionary spending, whereas 37% have in the reduction of on necessities to get by.
A smaller proportion have turned to extra drastic measures: 15% have borrowed cash or elevated debt, whereas 14% have taken on extra work to spice up their revenue.
Information from different analysis our bodies suggests monetary struggles are significantly prevalent amongst youthful generations. Deloitte’s 2025 Gen Z and Millennial Survey reveals over half of youthful staff reside paycheck to paycheck and one-third expertise work-related stress.
Little hope of a extra worthwhile future
Feeling the monetary burn, the employees surveyed by LiveCareer imagine there’s little hope of a brighter future. The overwhelming majority (89%) are frightened a few recession this 12 months and over half (58%) predict an increase in redundancies.
Given {that a} related proportion (54%) couldn’t final three months with out an revenue, this bleak outlook will solely exacerbate the monetary anxiousness so many staff really feel.
Many years within the making
“The compounding results of a number of generation-defining occasions over the past 20 years have decimated folks’s funds within the UK, leaving them susceptible to the influence this cash stress has on their work,” says Gethin Nadin, Chief Innovation Officer at Benifex.
“We are able to now hyperlink an worker’s cash worries to extra office accidents, decrease expertise adoption, and poorer administration. If nearly half of the workforce is experiencing monetary stress at this sort of regularity, we’re at a vital level the place failure to enhance worker monetary wellbeing is stopping our organisations from succeeding,” Nadin warns.
Subsequent steps for HR
To handle staff’ cash stress and enhance monetary wellbeing, Jasmine Escalera, profession professional at LiveCareer suggests the next steps: “Begin with wage, by benchmarking compensation to make sure your organization presents aggressive, livable wages. If will increase aren’t possible, present monetary assist assets like budgeting workshops, mentoring, or teaching,”.
“Transparency can be key. Preserving staff knowledgeable about firm efficiency and future plans helps them really feel supported and higher ready, even in unsure instances,” she provides.
