Why it’s more important than ever to look after the welfare of employees who also happen to be carers

One in seven people in the UK juggles work and care responsibilities– and this has only increased during the pandemic, when many families have taken older relatives into their own homes in order to safeguard them as much as they can.

Caring has an enormous impact on the general stress levels of employees, as well as on their work performance and career opportunities – and the burden still falls disproportionately on women. Even prior to the pandemic, up to six hundred people a week gave up work to fulfil caring responsibilities – and they often do this in preference to having frank discussions with employers about the possibility of greater working flexibility and better access to information and advice.

It is estimated that almost nine million people in the UK have care responsibilities and that more workdays are lost to employees managing elder care then childcare. Yet employers are still not doing enough to support their workforce in this important area of their lives.

So what should employers be seeking to do? Firstly, flexible working should be an option for those torn between standard working hours and care responsibilities .The pandemic has demonstrated that flexible and home working can work and therefore, hopefully, employers will be more open to this option when appropriate moving forward. In addition, all employees should be made aware of what emergency procedures are in place should they be called away to a care emergency. This should be clear via employee handbooks, but also this should bean issue which employees are made aware of on a regular basis.

Employees should also know that they can discuss care responsibilities and the issues these create for them with their line managers, without feeling that such discussions might be detrimental to their career prospects within the company.

Finally, companies need to ensure that they are offering the best level of support and resources to their staff, via regular seminars and webinars to discuss care issues and planning for care, as well as ensuring that they have a comprehensive bank of information and advice on care and all its aspects. One to one counselling using experts can be extremely effective.

All of these measures will help to ensure that the task of juggling work and care is more feasible and that employees do not feel they have are unable to be as productive as they can be, or worse, choose to stop work, because employers do not provide sufficient support for carers.

Deborah Stone advises companies on how to target the elder care market effectively at Mature Thinking. She also holds regular seminars and runs 1:1 clinics for company employees on planning for care and how to juggle work and elder care responsibilities. Her book, 'The Essential Family Guide to Caring for Older People' is available from Amazon and all good bookshops. It provides comprehensive information and advice for families caring for older relatives across the UK and beyond.

Contact Deborah here: hello@maturethinking.co.uk