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As baby boomers age, many are taking on elder care responsibilities. According to a 2004 national caregiver survey, there are 44.4 million family caregivers in the United States, and 60 percent of these caregivers are employed. While elder care concerns affect an increasing segment of the workforce, they are often hidden by employees and overlooked by employers. But it is likely that in the not too distant future, more workers will look to their employers for assistance with elder care issues.
The purpose of this paper is to highlight the extent and effects of elder care concerns in the workplace and to provide guidance and tools for HR professionals so that they can more effectively assist employees with elder care responsibilities and their managers.
Impact on Affected Employees
HR professionals surveyed for the SHRM Workplace Forecast (2008) identified the aging of the workforce and the growth in the number of employees with caring responsibilities (elder care, child care, both elder care and child care at the same time) as demographic trends that are likely to have a major impact on the workplace.
Employees with elder care responsibilities must juggle work responsibilities and the needs of an elderly family member. This can lead to increased stress and isolation for the caregiver employee. Moreover, many employees report that care giving worsens their own health and necessitates more doctor visits.
In addition, the demands of elder care can take a significant toll on employees’ finances. The need to take more time off, pass up promotions, retire early or leave the workforce costs caregiver employees almost $659,000 in lost wages, Social Security and pension contributions over their lifetimes, according to the MetLife Juggling Act Study: Balancing Care giving with Work and the Costs Involved (1999).
Potential Consequences for Employers
The problems experienced by employees in dealing with elder care can have a significant ripple effect in their organizations. Potential workplace consequences include increased absenteeism, increased turnover and decreased productivity.
Employers may not be aware of the nature and extent of elder care concerns of specific employees because many employees do not discuss elder care responsibilities and concerns about aging with managers or HR professionals as openly as they will discuss child care issues. On the other hand, if an employer is aware that an employee has elder care responsibilities, it must be careful not to treat the employee in ways that could give rise to a disparate treatment discrimination claim. In May 2007, the EEOC issued enforcement guidance to address unequal treatment of workers with care giving responsibilities. Although this guidance is not intended to create a new protected class, it suggests that unequal treatment of such employees may violate existing federal laws, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (when a caregiver is subjected to discrimination based on sex and/or race), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act (where an employer discriminates against a worker based on his or her association with an individual with a disability) or the Family and Medical Leave Act.
Thus, the challenge for employers is to make it easier for affected employees to communicate with managers and HR professionals about elder care concerns and to develop cost-effective and non-discriminatory policies and programs to address elder care issues. Some of the steps employers have taken to alleviate the strains of elder care on employees include various types of leave benefits, flexible work arrangements, dependent care benefits and elder care referral assistance. Table 1 shows the percentage of organizations polled in SHRM’s 2007 Benefits Survey that provide various elder care benefits. As this table indicates, elder care benefits programs have not been widely adopted to date.
Elder Care Benefits Provided by Employers |
|
Benefit |
Percentage of Employers That Provide This Benefit |
Elder care referral service |
20% |
Elder care leave above and beyond federal FMLA |
13% |
Elder care leave above and beyond state FMLA |
12% |
Access to backup elder care services (for an unexpected event) |
5% |
Subsidized cost of elder care |
4% |
Elder care assisted living assessments |
2% |
Elder care in-home assessments |
2% |
On-site elder care fairs (an opportunity for employees to speak directly with elder care experts about the many types of elder care services) |
1% |
Source: Adapted from Society for Human Resource Management. (2008). 2008 employee benefits: A survey report by SHRM. Alexandria, VA: Author. |
|
Workplace Applications
Reversed roles come into play as older generations live longer due to advances in health care treatment and technology and the off springs take on the responsibility of ensuring the safety and well-being of their parents as well as their own children. Often, children are geographically separated from parents and need to provide for their care from afar. Children may not be familiar with how to navigate government programs such as Medicare and Medicaid and are unaware of where to go for help. Elders may need help finding medical assistance in their communities as well as getting to doctor appointments. Even if elders are not undergoing medical care, help is often needed managing daily life activities. Some baby boomers may be faced with child care and elder care needs simultaneously. All these factors translate into attendance and productivity issues in the workplace as boomers are stretched for physical time on the job as well as competing demands for their attention.
As the U.S. population ages and family units become smaller, the responsibilities of providing various levels of elder care will increase for both men and women in the workforce. Providing employees with elder care resources, is an opportunity for employers to show their employees that they understand the demands and complexities of caring for an older family member.
