Almost half of Canadians are financially unwell,
stressed, worried and five times less likely to engage regularly in
any healthy activities
TSX/NYSE/PSE: MFC SEHK:945
WATERLOO, ON, March 24, 2017 /CNW/ - Two in five Canadians
say they are financially unwell, according to the latest Manulife
Financial Wellness Index. Those respondents are concerned by debt
(82 per cent), not saving for retirement (60 per cent), stressed
(67 per cent) due to their financial situation and 83 per cent said
they are not financially prepared to protect their loved ones
(death, serious illness, disability, having a will, etc).
"We want to help Canadians live better and healthier lives.
Looking at people's wellness has traditionally included physical
aspects, and in recent years focused more on emotional health,"
said Sue Reibel, Executive
Vice-President and General Manager Institutional Markets, Manulife.
"Our findings show that the role of financial wellness, whether
good or bad, affects overall wellbeing and is an important
contributor to helping Canadians reach positive emotional
health."
Financial wellness is based on the way an individual manages
their overall financial situation, including budgeting, retirement
planning, investing, debt management, financial protection and
financial stress. Manulife's research shows that money continues to
be the greatest source of stress and it impacts an individual's
mental health leading to absenteeism rates and lost productivity.
Canadians who consider themselves financially unwell revealed that
dealing with money is a factor of stress (81 per cent,
often/sometimes) and those who are financially unwell are eight
times more likely to have bad stress levels and may be distracted
at work (49 per cent, often/sometimes).
Manulife's Financial Wellness Assessment is a quick, easy
and free online questionnaire measuring financial wellness. The
assessment was launched in 2016 for group retirement customers and
is now also available to group benefits customers, helping one in
three Canadians to improve their overall financial situation. It
provides Manulife group plan customers with a score and a
personalized action plan. The Financial Wellness Assessment can be
found in the sign in section of their online account.
"This is the first time a financial assessment is available for
both group benefits and group retirement customers to help them
improve their financial situation. This assessment will help them
learn their financial wellness score, and provide them with
personalized action plans they can use to potentially reduce their
financial worries," said Reibel.
Healthy finances and a healthy lifestyle go hand in
hand
Canadians who are financially well are more likely to be
successful at managing their health according to the Financial
Wellness Index. Those with low levels of financial wellness are
almost five times more likely not to engage in any healthy
activity. Canadians who say they are financially well are more
likely to say that their physical health is excellent (25 per cent)
or good (45 per cent), they eat more fruits and vegetables (79 per
cent), get more exercise (68 per cent), get regular health checkups
(61 per cent) and educate themselves on being healthier (46 per
cent).
In addition, employers offering group plans have an impact on
the financial wellness and health of their employees. Those who are
financially well are more likely to have a group retirement
(65 per cent) and group benefits plan (79 per cent) compared to
those who are financially unwell (42 per cent and 58 per cent,
respectively). Also, those who have group benefits plans are
more likely to score better on the stress index (56 per cent) than
those who do not have any plans (48 per cent).
"Employers have an important role to play in their employees'
wellness, physically, mentally and financially. Their actions can
positively impact the level of engagement and productivity of their
teams, which in the long-term can impact their bottom line," added
Reibel.
About the Manulife Financial Wellness study
Environics Research Group surveyed 2,024 Canadians, 18 and over,
between August 31 and September 7,
2016, asking them about budgeting, retirement, investments,
debt, protection and stress. Respondents were equally split along
gender lines, average age was 47, and quotas and weighting were
used to ensure that results reflected the Canadian reality in terms
of age, gender and region.
This survey was designed as an index and is intended to be
repeated annually to create an informative track of Canadians'
financial wellness over time.
More details about the Manulife Financial Wellness Index are
available here.
About Manulife
Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international
financial services group that helps people achieve their dreams and
aspirations by putting customers' needs first and providing the
right advice and solutions. We operate as John Hancock in the
United States and Manulife elsewhere. We provide financial
advice, insurance, as well as wealth and asset management solutions
for individuals, groups and institutions. At the end of 2016, we
had approximately 35,000 employees, 70,000 agents, and thousands of
distribution partners, serving more than 22 million customers. At
the end of 2016, we had C$977 billion
($728 billion) in assets under
management and administration, and in the previous 12 months we
made almost C$26 billion in payments
to our customers. Our principal operations are in Asia, Canada
and the United States where we
have served customers for more than 100 years. With our global
headquarters in Toronto, Canada,
we trade as 'MFC' on the Toronto,
New York, and the Philippine stock
exchanges and under '945' in Hong
Kong.
SOURCE Manulife Financial Corporation