Helping employers and solutions providers design and scale benefits that improve financial security and retention.
Why this matters
The workplace is one of the most powerful opportunities to improve financial security at scale.
$250 billion
Workers lose an average of seven hours of productivity per week due to financial stress—costing employers up to $250 billion annually.
30%
Over 30% of workers in the United States earn low and moderate incomes, yet workplace benefits are least likely to reach them.
33.3%
33.3% of financially stressed employees say financial concerns directly reduce their productivity at work.
Our framework
How We Drive Change
Commonwealth works across the workplace benefits ecosystem to turn research into action—partnering with employers and the providers who design and administer benefits to build, test, and scale solutions that strengthen workers’ financial stability and long-term well-being.
We partner with employers and the providers who administer workplace benefits and retirement plans—including recordkeepers, payroll providers, and benefits administrators—to research, design, test, and scale solutions that better support workers living on low and moderate incomes. Our work helps build workplace systems that strengthen financial stability, resilience, and long-term opportunity.
Signature Initiative
Emergency Savings Initiative
Emergency savings is the foundation of financial stability—yet millions of workers have no cushion for unexpected expenses. The Emergency Savings Initiative, developed in partnership with the BlackRock Foundation, brings together employers, recordkeepers, and policymakers to make workplace emergency savings accessible at scale. Through research, pilot programs, and industry engagement, the initiative has generated critical evidence on what drives savings adoption and built momentum for systemic solutions—including helping advance the passage of SECURE 2.0.
Impact Stories & Case Studies
Signature Initiative
Benefits for the Future
Workplace benefits are among the most powerful yet underutilized tools for improving financial security, especially for workers living on low and moderate incomes. Benefits for the Future is Commonwealth’s multi-year initiative to change that. We partner with employers and benefit providers to research, design, and pilot intentional workplace benefits that are outcome-focused, responsive to workers’ needs, and additive to existing offerings. With philanthropic support from JPMorgan Chase, our expertise and services are provided at no cost to employers.
Impact Stories & Case Studies
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Transforming Workplace Benefits into an Engine for Financial Health
A Look at the Needs of Workers Earning LMI
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