The usual slate of guest speakers at a company brown-bag lunch-and-learn series include a certified financial planner, a rep from the 401(k) plan provider and a wellness guru. But during hard times, employers might want to add an expert on flea markets and garage sales to the list.

"It's a great time to sell a used car or consider holding a garage or yard sale," says Ted Beck, CEO and president of the National Endowment for Financial Education.

More Americans are getting rid of stuff that they don't want and turning it into cash. "It's no longer cool to have excessive consumption. That seems to be out of our culture for a while and maybe that's a good thing," adds Beck, whose Colorado-based, nonprofit organization promotes financial literacy.

Tighten the purse strings

A slack economy means pay raises and bonuses are off the table and salary cuts are the norm. Yet, experts say, employers can still motivate and engage employees by educating them on how to become more frugal. In other words: Here is how you can cut your expenses in light of a smaller paycheck.

"With pay raises shrinking or going away for many workers, it is important for employers to provide personal finance resources for employees," explains Jeff Rubleski, director of sales strategy at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and the author of "The 10 Steps to Financial Wellness."

"The benefit of doing this is two-fold: Employers will be providing their employees with actionable personal finance information that can immediately help employees optimize their limited financial resources," Rubleski notes. "It will also help employees to recognize the importance of utilizing employer-sponsored benefits appropriately. All of this should enhance employee engagement in personal finance decisions and in company-sponsored benefit plans."

Beck recommends employers encourage workers who have seen their salaries reduced or frozen to sit down with their family and talk about the pay cut.

"Let's say you have a 10% cut in pay. You need to sit down with your family and talk about it, explaining that, 'We are going to have to do some things differently. This is a temporary event, and we will get through it, but everybody has to get involved,'" Beck explains.

For instance, workers may have to alter the traditional family vacation and say no to impulse buying. "It's about attitude, but every family member has to do his or her job," Beck says.

He tells employees at workplace financial education sessions that they need to create a budget and know how they spend their money. That means going through credit card statements and cancelled checks.

Workers, especially those now receiving smaller paychecks, have to ask themselves where they spend their money and plug up unnecessary leaks. "Many people will say, 'I don't have any excessive spending,' but still look at it and try to figure it out," Beck says.

Equally important, workers hit with a pay cut or freeze need to create a savings plan. "Just because you have been through one round of reduction doesn't mean things could not slip some more," Beck notes. "If you don't have a saving component built into your budget process, than you need to do everything you can to get it there because you may need that money." He recommends, for example, switching from a $500 auto deductible to a $1,000 deductible.

Moreover, employers need to effectively communicate and drive enrollment to the employee benefits programs that they offer, such as reminding employees that the company's 401(k) match essentially is free money.

Back to basics, back to school

Employers can even step it up a notch in helping their workers to manage expenses on a tight budget by enrolling them in financial planning classes taught by professionals.

The College of Financial Planning offers a course titled "Foundation in Financial Planning," which allows the average person to learn the basics on key financial concepts. It's an entry-level course in which students are taught all aspects of the financial services industry, including topics on budgeting, investing, taxes and insurance.

"Our data shows that students who complete our financial education courses become more productive employees. You see students empowered by making better financial decisions," says Dirk Pantone, vice president of business development at the Colorado-based institution, which provides financial services education and professional certification.

The school recently reduced the price of the "Foundation in Financial Planning" course from $985 to $485 for the online, instructor-led course, and from $785 to $385 for the self-study course.

"Some companies that we work with are looking at using the price reduction on this financial planning course as an employee benefit," says Pantone.

Strategies to increase employee financial well-being

>> Implement focused personal finance education. Start by encouraging employees to prepare a basic monthly budget and calculate personal financial net worth.

>> Create savvy employees involving big-ticket purchases. The two largest purchases most employees make involve transportation and housing. Consider an ongoing worksite educational series focusing on real estate and transportation.

>> Solicit employee input on personal finance best practices. Consider posting these ideas on your company intranet or newsletter.

>> Distribute objective personal finance materials to boost employee financial wellness.

>> Incorporate financial wellness into your overall wellness programming. By tying in employee financial education to wellness offerings, employees will understand how their personal finances affect the financial choices they make at work and in their daily lives. Financial wellness programming also can serve as an entry point for those who have not participated in traditional wellness programming.

Source: The Wellness Council of America (www.welcoa.org)