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TELUS Mental Health Index: Cost of living is the top money worry for 58 percent of US workers as financial anxiety hits workplace productivity
- TU
- T-PA
A new Q2 2026 report highlights critical workplace mental health trends, revealing forty-six percent of US workers don’t understand their retirement benefits, while 30 percent feel unsafe disclosing mental health issues to managers.
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The Index reveals a stark link between employee financial wellbeing and overall productivity, as one in seven US workers says money stress is negatively affecting their workplace productivity
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Cost of living is the top financial stressor for 58 percent of workers, dwarfing those concerned about retirement savings (12 percent) and emergency savings (9 percent)
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Nearly half (46 percent) of US workers don’t fully understand the retirement plan they pay into
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Almost two-thirds (64 percent) of US workers are anxious about money, and one in nine never stops worrying about their finances
CHICAGO, Sept. 2, 2026 /CNW/ — Today, TELUS Health released its TELUS Mental Health Index (“the Index”) reporting that the cost of living is the single largest financial stressor for 58 percent of US workers, dwarfing concerns over retirement savings (12 percent) and building emergency funds (9 percent). Adding to these financial anxieties, a benefits literacy gap finds nearly half (46 percent) of US workers admit they do not fully understand the retirement plan they pay into each month.
According to the Index, the growing pressures of day-to-day expenses has created a constant state of distraction for millions of employees, with one in nine reporting they never stop worrying about money. Almost two-thirds (64 percent) of US workers report money-related stress and more than one in seven admit that financial strain is negatively impacting their productivity on the job. Financial strain continues to compound, as twenty-three percent of US employees lack emergency savings to cover basic needs, and workers lacking emergency savings are three times more likely to report workplace productivity declines.
“For the large majority of US workers, survival has eclipsed long-term planning. Fifteen percent of workers report that personal financial stress is directly hurting their work productivity, while three percent have missed work entirely due to financial strain,” says Paula Allen, Global Leader of Research and Insights, TELUS Health. “These financial anxieties coupled with a lack of support resources creates operational costs for employers, highlighting how employee financial health and workplace psychological safety are directly linked across the US labor market.”
