Employer Update

When students are learning to read, they move through various stages of literacy development. First, they learn to recognize and sound out words, then they progress through simple reading and decoding before becoming fluent and then expert readers.

Financial literacy works in a similar way. Investopedia defines financial literacy as the "ability to understand and effectively use various financial skills, including personal financial management, budgeting and investing."

April is Financial Literacy Month, a great opportunity to focus your employees' attention on creating a solid financial future. VRS offers resources that focus on the money issues most people encounter at every stage in life.

We're Here to Help: Point employees to VRS Education and Counseling page for live and recorded webinars on benefits and retirement planning. While in-person counseling appoints are temporarily suspended, members may schedule virtual sessions by calling 888-827-3847.

'Start Here' with myVRS Financial Wellness: Employees may not know where to begin with certain financial topics. They can take their first step with the myVRS Financial Wellness Start Here Guides, available through their myVRS accounts. The newest guides include:

• Managing Financial Stress – Get tips on how to assess and track spending and learn strategies to cut expenses and grow income.
• Improving Your Credit Score – With versions for people with low credit scores and high credit scores, members can find tips and strategies on lowering their credit utilization rate, correctly timing their payments and staying mindful about credit inquiries.
• Preparing for a Move – Whether moving 1,000 feet or 1,000 miles, this guide helps members identify ways to save money and lower stress before, during and after move-in day.

Once they've made a good start, members can take their learning to the next level with interactive mini-courses. Each personalized course allows members to learn at their own pace with video, audio and quiz questions to gauge what they've learned along the way.

Take advantage of the myVRS Financial Wellness toolkit for employers, which includes content and graphics to assist you with promotions to members.