There is an urgent problem in businesses throughout this nation that is being ignored! Approximately 44.4 million caregivers are providing care or help to older loved ones, and 60% of them juggle these demands with work outside the home (1), (2). This means there are approximately 28 million people working in our companies and organizations every day who are preoccupied with coordinating care, thinking about their loved one, and worrying about the care that he/she may or may not be receiving.
This “unmanaged caregiving” – juggling work and the care of an aging loved one– is not only causing caregivers to become stressed out and unfocused, but also has an effect on their work and those that work around them. The “cascade effect” of stress and frustration often impacts entire work groups. Co-workers, however, often sympathize and therefore do not address the issue. Caregiving employees often prolong the tensions because they view their caregiving as a stigmatizing family issue; this resistance fuels the fire of unmanaged eldercare in the workplace.
Within every organization, 15% of the workforce is providing some level of care for an older loved one(3). Ignoring this issue leads to absenteeism, turnover, higher usage of healthcare and FMLA benefits, and decreased employee satisfaction…and not just among the caregiving employees. Co-workers are frustrated and angry when their own job is impacted by lost productivity of caregivers. It is too late to be proactive; the problem is here. What is your organization doing to address these issues?
For more information go to the Eldercare Education Consultants, LLC website at http://www.eldercareeducation.com or contact Kate Sandker at (513) 731-5400 or kesandker@eldercareeducation.com.
1 National Alliance for Caregiving & AARP (NCA/AARP). (2004). Caregiving in the U.S. Retrieved May 17th, 2005 from http://www.caregiving.org/data/04finalreport.pdf.
Home
