The Need to Add Caregiver Support to Your Employee Benefits Plan: Lessons Learned from COVID-19

By Lisa WeitzmanJanuary 15, 2021

We have all seen the numbers: 41.8 million Americans provide unpaid care to a loved one over the age of 50 each year. Sixty-one percent of these caregivers simultaneously work outside the home while providing, on average, 24 hours of care per week at home (the equivalent of another part-time job). Twenty percent of caregivers are millennials, and 40 percent of millennial caregivers are male. These numbers remind us of several things:

  • The face of caregiving is changing; it is no longer simply a role occupied by middle-aged women;
  • No demographic or workplace is “immune” from working caregivers; and
  • Most likely there are many working caregivers on your teams and staff, many of whom never talk about these responsibilities while at work, and are thus hidden from view.

The COVID-19 pandemic has certainly exposed gaps in access to needed community-based supports for many people, and terms such as “social isolation” are now a part of the daily vernacular. Families continue to struggle with balancing full-time employment with care for older loved ones and children who are suddenly learning from home. The spotlight now shines brightly on the plight of those who are truly sandwiched in the middle. The questions are: why does it matter and what can we do as employers?

Why Does It Matter?

Providing tangible supports and benefits for working caregivers on our staff is more than just “the right things to do;” it has become a business imperative. A recent study released by the National Alliance for Caregiving (NAC) and AARP entitled Caregiving in the U.S. 2020 shows that when employees struggle to balance caregiving with work, or when the demands of work come into conflict with caregiving responsibilities, working caregivers may be forced to alter their work situation. In practical terms, these changes may include:

  • Arriving late
  • Leaving early
  • Taking time off
  • Decreasing work hours to provide care

In a domino effect, other employees are then forced to cover the tasks neglected by a colleague’s care-related absence. And even when caregivers are physically at work, as stated in The Caring Company report published by Harvard Business School, “the unpredictability of care events can also result in a distracted, multitasking worker, tackling care-related responsibilities during work hours.” Needless to say, caregivers often report that their own health suffers as well. Left unnoticed, caregiving responsibilities can threaten attendance and performance, and thus productivity, across an organization.

Caregiving creates an even greater challenge because employers often do not measure, and thus do not realize, the extent to which employees are burdened by care. In fact, the same study published by Harvard Business School suggests that most employers do not understand the impact of caregiving on employee performance. In contrast, Harvard’s employee survey revealed that 32 percent of all respondents had voluntarily left a job during their career due to caregiving responsibilities, and more than 80 percent of employees with caregiving responsibilities admit that caregiving affects their productivity—specifically, their ability to perform at their best.

This contrast leads to even more serious staffing problems. In fact, the burden of caregiving ironically falls most heavily on those employees who are the most difficult to replace: those with the most expertise and years of experience. This news is particularly troubling given American employers’ increasing concerns about finding experienced, well-qualified workers. And obviously, there are also significant costs associated with employee turnover, including recruiting, training and the loss of institutional knowledge. Ultimately, the caregiving crisis in America extends far beyond the challenge that the media portrays of finding good help in the home. It is quickly becoming a real crisis for businesses whose employees are trying to do it all.

Is Relief on the Horizon?

Unfortunately, as our society continues to age, our loved ones live increasingly longer and the cost of care in a facility surges upward, there does not seem to be an end in sight for this caregiving crisis. In fact, the intensity of care demanded of working caregivers is expected to increase rather than lessen. And while women currently comprise the majority of family caregivers, this issue is actually gender neutral. In fact, Harvard’s study revealed that men are more likely to leave a job as a result of caregiving responsibilities than women.

Lessons Learned from COVID-19

One strong message from the pandemic remains: mental health matters. Mental health is as critical to job performance, caregiving and overall wellbeing as physical health. Caregiving puts high demands on a person’s mental health, which can be further added upon by stresses in work and personal life. And, as many now realize, mental health directly correlates with social connectedness and a sense of belonging. With employees now scattered and working remotely, organizations must intentionally focus on ways to build engagement and ensure that employees feel tied to something bigger than themselves. Promoting individual health is now critical to the health and wellbeing of an organization as a whole.

What Employers Can Do

As employers continue to address the conundrums created by COVID-19, it is imperative that to match employee needs with relevant benefits. Benefits an organization provides must be valued by their employees and seen as effective ways to support the work/life balance. Towards this end, you might consider the following:

  • Think critically about creating a “caring culture” which demonstrates commitment to issues faced by caregivers and ensures that discussing caregiving responsibilities does not equate to lost opportunities at work.
  • Survey employees to determine benefits that would be valued – and then act to implement them. Not surprisingly, studies show that when caregivers have preferred benefits at work, they are less likely to stop working.
  • Assess employee needs from a different perspective: regardless of current demographics, caregiving will eventually touch most – if not all – of your staff.
  • Consider ways to become an employer of choice by evaluating how your employee benefits packages may enable the organization to differentiate itself. 
  • Reevaluate the cost-benefit analysis used when choosing the bucket of services offered to employees: investing in upstream programming can often minimize or eliminate utilization of more expensive services downstream.
  • Connect employees with programs that can guide them through caregiving. Many caregivers note that it is very difficult to navigate and coordinate community resources or to find affordable services like home-delivered meals, transportation or home health aides that would ease their burden. Programs like WeCare…because you do, offered by Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging, provide support and assistance to help caregivers manage the stress of caring for an older loved one while empowering employers with the tools they need to support their workforce.

In the end, we all strive for a similar goal: work environments that are innovative, progressive, efficient and productive. In order to achieve these goals, we must similarly find ways to maximize support, flexibility and responsiveness for our employees. In other words, we must find ways to provide value to our own largest value-adds. Thus, as we reflect on the lessons learned from COVID-19, we are reminded of the importance of keeping employees connected and engaged. What caregiver well-being plan will you offer to meet this challenge?