Now, worker’s ‘bale’ may be obtained through an app

PAYKEY, a fintech company based in Israel, bared that it is in advance talks with some leading banks in the Philippines to introduce the first Earned Wage Access (EWA) app in the local market in early 2022.

EWA is a concept that is now fast becoming a global trend. It allows employees to access their salary before payday and release their already earned stipend with a click of a button.

Workers in the Philippines get paid once or twice a month on payday, and it’s been like this for many years which, according to Paykey Chief Innovation Officer and General Manager Roy Gabriel, is “a very outdated way of looking at how salaries are paid.”

“If they need money to pay bills and other unanticipated expenses, especially amid the new normal, they need to find another solution. They would ask for an advance, or what Filipinos call ‘bale’, from their employers, or even borrow from their family and friends, or take a loan from external lenders, which, sometimes can get stressful and painful,” he said.

“All these happen because they’re waiting for their payday even if they already have worked and earned their money. Employees have this money but cannot access it even when they need it. It’s a very archaic way of looking at employees and salaries and, we want to change that by empowering them through EWA,” he added.

With EWA app, banks can offer this to their corporate clients so employers can include it as an employment benefit to their Filipino workers.

It works by just going to the app to see how much money they earned to date. Then, they can request an advance on salary via the app. Since its feature allows them to transfer the funds to their linked bank account immediately, they can expect the money to be credited as soon as the payment has been confirmed.

Employees do not only get benefitted from the Paykey EWA app, but also the employers because it motivates productivity among their workers and empowers them to take charge of their finances.

Based on a recent study published by Visa, 84 percent of the 1,000 surveyed participants “worry about finances while at work,” and 68 percent indicated that financial worries affect their health and productiveness. Also, it indicates that over eight out of 10 employees spend time at work thinking about or dealing with finances each week.

Per the 2018 Special Report: Financial Stress and the Bottom Line by PWC, on the other hand, the production cost due to the financial stress amounts to an estimated $3.3 million, excluding the $166,000 cost for failure to report to work for a company with 10,000 employees.

“Simply put, everyone earns with EWA. The employer gets a happier, more productive worker, the employee feels less stressed and is taking control over his life, and the bank gets to offer a new product in the salary arena. This is an area where we did not see any innovation in such a long time,” Gabriel said.

The top executive also emphasized that the solution serves as “a major selling point in a competitive job market” as it aids easier recruitment.

“In the Philippines, the generation is getting younger. With the coming of age of digital native generations, such as millennials and Genzs, employees now expect everything to happen fast and with just a few clicks. Integrating EWA is one great way for banks to ensure that they thrive now and, in the future,” he stressed.