This employee generation has the most student loan debt

Student loan debt is thought to be a Millennial problem by most employers, but recent data shows this notion simply isn’t true.

When broken down, the numbers show that today’s $1.3 trillion student loan problem is actually huge for a different generation,whose struggles are turning into serious employer costs and personal financial crisis for millions of Americans.

THE STUDENT LOAN GENERATION IS REALLY GEN X

According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, borrowers between the ages of 30 and 49 hold at least 50 percent of today’s student loan debt. This means Generation X carries most of America’s $1.3 trillion student loan debt and is the most likely to reap real financial benefit from an employer-sponsored student loan reimbursement program.

Behind Generation X are Millennials, who carry roughly 30% of today’s debt, followed by Baby Boomers, who hold less than 10% of today’s student loan debt.

EMPLOYERS CAN BOOST WELLNESS & SAVE GEN XERS THOUSANDS

According to Purchasing Power data on debt-stress, 47 percent of employees are spending 2-3 hours at work each week dealing with financial issues. Based on current median salary of Gen Xers, those 2 – 3 hours translate to more than $200k in lost productivity for companies. On the flip side, if you can help reduce your employees’ debt-stress, companies stand to regain the loss in productivity and the costs associated.

Student loan stress affects 70 percent of today’s graduates, meaning that student loan help is a necessity for employers who are serious about promoting real employee wellness.

HOW EMPLOYERS CAN HELP: STEP 1, ASK YOUR EMPLOYEES

For companies who are serious about employee wellness and winning the recruiting and retention battle, national data and the headlines from Fortune, Bloomberg, and other outlets say that student loan benefits make sense.

The real question is “should my company offer a student loan benefit? And, if so how?”

For every organization these answers are different. Let us help you get the answers you need. Contact us to receive a short survey and free report you can share with your employees on how student loans are affecting your organization today.

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