Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | January 11, 2021 | Worcester Business Journal 33 "Two weeks… Where have I heard that before?!" – Jane Carbonneau, Dec. 22, in response to Gov. Charlie Baker's announcement that business capacity would be reduced aer Christmas "Is anyone surprised???" – Giselle Rivera-Flores, Dec. 11, about a report indi- cating the majority of Paycheck Protection Program loans in Greater Worcester went to wealthy, white neighborhoods "Hope they negotiated a good deal on the obscenely expensive real estate they're using. is could be a good opportunity, but marketing and distribution will be the ultimate challenge because being the 'third place' is not it anymore. So many good brewers in this city." – James Ryan Moreau (@jrmoreau), Dec. 30, commenting on Wormtown Brewery's planned expansion on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester "How about no?" – Matthew Noe (@NoetheMatt), Dec. 18, on Amazon's plans to open two Worcester warehouses Know your pandemic relief options V I E W P O I N T E D I T O R I A L F or a few weeks in late March and early April, the entire global economy appeared to be grinding to a halt in the face of the coronavirus pandemic, and small business owners were rightly concerned the fallout might drive their companies out of existence. en came the $2.2-trillion federal CARES Act, which offered a more stabilized environment and a sense of relief from the initial panic. At the heart of that government stimulus program in the spring was the $525-billion Paycheck Protection Program, which provided forgivable loans to small and not so small businesses. Nearly 18,000 organizations in Central Massachusetts applied for one of the PPP loans, including 350 firms who qualified for loans in excess of $1 million. It is safe to say for most of those 18,000 businesses, this was the first time they ever took advantage of a government relief program. S ometimes the government is here to help – and the PPP program, despite its imperfections, proved to be a difference maker for companies in need. Nearly 10 months later, unemployment remains high and economic output is well below its pre-pandemic levels. We have a much clearer picture of who is suffering most from the pandemic. Countless businesses have closed, and small business revenue dropped 46% in Worcester County in 2020, according to the economic activity Opportunity Insights, run by a consortium including Harvard University in Cambridge and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in Seattle. Still, if your business has survived 2020, and with a light at the end of the tunnel in the form of a vaccine, business owners need to continue to pay attention to any additional lifelines thrown into the choppy waters. At the end of December, Congress passed a $900-billion stimulus package with financial programs for businesses, and the Baker Administration has created a separate $668-million small business grant program in Massachusetts. Both of these efforts – combined with many others, including an extended emergency relief application deadline from the U.S. Small Business Administration – can help businesses navigate the tough times between now and whenever the COVID-19 vaccines help society achieve herd immunity. ese new federal and state programs can offer immediate, needed relief to the industries most challenged by the pandemic, but many small businesses don't have the bandwidth to understand the many ways they can help themselves through government relief. Digging in and learning about the details of this new round of programs would be a good place to start. Not only can they help your business survive the bumpy ride over the next several months, they can help position you for sustained success far into the future. Consider your workers' finances I t's been almost a year since we had to adapt to a new normal due to COVID-19. e year 2020 has affected us as individuals and professionals. While the Paycheck Protection Program for small businesses and the stimulus checks to individuals as part of the CARES Act helped in the short-term, behind these programs, looms a more concerning situation: Employee financial wellness, a topic not oen addressed by employers. e fact is, just as employees are more pro- ductive when they're physically healthy, the same goes for financial wellness. Financial health has become a big topic since the 2008 financial crisis. We talk about it in private, read articles, or listen to podcasts, but even now it is a difficult topic to address. at made me wonder why more businesses do not take a more aggressive approach to ensure their workforce has the tools to reach their financial goals. e American Physiological Association says financial instability has been directly linked to and is one of the leading causes of an increase in stress across the nation. e American Institute of Stress notes stress translates to lack of sleep, depression, absenteeism and high employee turnover. Your employees could be feeling financially stressed for many reasons: worrying about college tuition for the kids, not having enough for retirement, or the burden of student loan debt. Employers are not the cause of these stressors, but they are in the best position to do something about it. Workforce financial education should be the foundation in establishing a financial wellness program. For midsize to large organizations, the expectation should be to have a well-structured financial well-being program sponsored by human resources as a free employee benefit. Offering a library, a weekly blog, and learning modules on topics like creating a budget, good debt vs. bad debt, the value of savings, and understanding credit. e goal is to provide understandable resources employees can use. Businesses should always be thinking what other benefits could be provided for better employee financial stability. How can small businesses have an impact on their employee financial well-being without the same resources? ere are several strategies to take, with the most important and cost-effective being a partnership with a financial insti- tution or nonprofit organization to offer financial education. Not all financial institutions are created equal and not all of them have an established approach to financial well- ness. e best partner can offer a model bringing financial education to business workforces or offer financial coach- ing in a one-on-one setting to provide workers with tools and resources needed to achieve financial wellness. Once a business has established that partnership, it can promote it as part of employee benefits and help staff navigate the waters of financial literacy with the help of competent hands. Financial wellness can bring value to any business no matter their size. Having a strategy to address this topic can change the company's culture and create a more productive environment for the business and their employees. Johan Romero Luna is assistant vice president and area manager for Workers Credit Union in Worcester. BY JOHAN ROMERO LUNA Special to the Worcester Business Journal Johan Romero Luna W W WO R D F R O M T H E W E B Facebook feedback Tweets of the Week

• Cover