Supermarket Asda has rolled out a workplace savings account benefit for its 150,000 employees as of this week.
Asda employees will be able to access a 4.7% annual equivalent rate (AER) workplace savings account, provided by financial benefits platform Wagestream, which is fully protected under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
Compared to high street accounts that offer similar rates, they will not be required to deposit a fixed amount and can withdraw money at any time with no fees attached.
Staff will be able to save by either setting a fixed amount to be taken out of their regular pay and depositing it straight into their workplace savings account, or by rounding up. This will see their shift payments rounded to the nearest whole pound and the difference automatically deposited into their accounts.
This will be offered by Asda alongside a wide range of other benefits via its partnership with Wagestream, such as retail discounts, money coaching, workplace loans, financial education and choice over when to get paid.
Asda decided to introduce this support following findings from its own Income Tracker, which is a barometer of household disposable income. It revealed that UK households are now prioritising saving over spending.
Hayley Tatum, chief people and corporate affairs officer at Asda, said: “Financial wellbeing is a top priority for us and offering this workplace benefit is just one of the many ways we’re continuing to support our staff. This new benefit is alongside other financial benefits and support we already offer our employees at Asda, which includes financial education, budgeting tools, discounts and flexible pay. We’re looking forward to this latest roll-out, which we hope will have a positive impact for so many of our staff.”
