It’s hard to understand how much of an impact caregiving
will have on businesses because baby boomers are just beginning to retire. In
order to understand how businesses will be affected, we need to first
understand how many individuals will become caregivers.
In 1997, AARP and the National Alliance for Caregiving
teamed up to research the impact of caregiving in the U.S. They found that about
22.4 million households they contacted provided some sort of caregiving, and of
this, 51.8% of these individuals were employed full-time[i].
In 2009, AARP conducted this same research, and there were 42.1 million
caregivers. Of this number, 58% are employed either full-time or part time[ii].
According to MetLife, the number of caregivers has tripled in the past 15
years. That is an incredibly high number of caregivers, and, with this number
tripling, many businesses will be affected by this.
How does all of this impact employers? In AARP’s Report,
“Valuing the Invaluable: 2011 Update,” they found that nearly seven in ten, or
69%, of caregivers have to make work accommodations because of their caregiving
responsibilities. These work place accommodations include things such as
working from home, creating a more flexible schedule, staying late to make up
missed hours and using sick time for caregiving responsibilities.However,
these work place accommodations do not always provide the best type of support
for caregivers.
While these changes can provide caregivers with more time to
attend to their caregiving responsibilities, they do not address some of the
emotional stressors involved with caregiving. In addition to being confusing
and overwhelming, caring for an ailing or aging loved one is extremely emotionally
taxing. As a result, caregivers work at the office can be impacted by anxiety,
depression, fear and some of the other emotions associated with caregiving.
According to AARP and the National Alliance for Caregiving, caregiving
can directly affect productivity in six ways:
Replacement costs to cover employees who quit as
a result of caregiving responsibilities
Absenteeism
Presenteeism costs
The costs associated with work day interruptions
Costs as a result of eldercare crises
The costs associated with supervising employed
caregivers
What can employers do? Employers can support their employees
through specific programs, such as WeCare+, that are designed to guide
caregivers through this process. In addition to providing resources, we will
provide guidance and support after conducting an on-site needs based
assessments. A field clinician will then follow up with the caregiver and their
family to provide support and guidance. To learn more about WeCare+, visit our
website here: http://www.longtermsol.com/programs/wecare
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