More and more employers are offering to help repay their workers' student loans as another benefit to attract and retain talent, but loan servicers' legacy payment processing systems and other technical issues are stymieing efforts, according to the CFPB's report, "Innovation highlights: Emerging student loan repayment assistance programs."

Private-sector employers are joining many state and local governments, as well as nonprofits, to help more workers repay their student debt, according to the bureau's report. Employers are offering this help as a benefit, much like helping with 401(k) contributions, and are either paying loan servicing companies directly or through employer-sponsored third-party repayment assistance programs.

"These entities note that student loan repayment assistance programs may be a promising way to reduce borrowers' overall financial stress, but potential barriers to additional innovation exist," the authors write. "Industry stakeholders highlight a complex process for making third-party payments driven by student loan servicers' legacy information technology, all-too-frequent payment processing errors, and the servicing industry's lack of a standardized process for handling third-party payments."