According to a new RAND reportthere are approximately 105.6 million family caregivers in the United States. Many of these caregivers work full-time or part-time while caring for a loved one with an injury, illness, or disability. Carers’ health and wellbeing extends to the workplace, and both employers and employees can benefit from carer-friendly policies. However, many employers do not know how many of their employees are unpaid family carers. Over 70% of workers have some type of caring responsibility, but more than half of these employees did not share their carer status with their employer. Instead, many caregivers struggle in silence, trying to balance their careers with caring responsibilities. This can lead to negative outcomes for the carer and their employer. However, when working carers have the support and resources they need, they can be an asset to their employers, contributing distinctive and high-performance skills that can positively influence workplace culture and improve talent retention. Additionally, compassionate care policies reduce stigma and discrimination within an organization, creating a healthier work environment for employers and employees.

Costs of care

The immense responsibility of caring for a family member or friend can cause many working caregivers to neglect their career aspirations. A report from National Alliance for Caregiving and AARP found that 70% of working carers experienced work-related challenges due to their carer status and 61% of informal carers experienced a change in their employment due to dual roles. These changes range from reducing working hours to taking a leave of absence or leaving the workforce altogether, resulting in an estimated 25.2 billion dollars in lost productivity. In addition, the stress of informal caregiving, compiled with work and family pressures, causes caregivers to experience higher rates of depression, anxiety, high blood pressure, and obesity. Poor health outcomes for caregivers contribute to higher healthcare costs for employers. Creating a care-friendly workplace can help employers reduce these costs and improve their company culture in the process.

Supporting carers in the workplace

Before a company can become more care-friendly, employers must identify that there is a need for care programs and policies. To do this, someone needs to speak up for carers in the workplace and draw attention to the challenges they face. “The best way of (care)

Programs to be successful is if there is a leadership champion who recognizes their own experience as a caregiver and recognizes that their employees are likely going through a similar circumstance,” says Lindsey Niemeier, president of TCARE.ai, a digital , data-driven caregiver support platform founded in 2017.

Inviting caregivers to share their stories through anonymous surveys, company-wide campaigns, employee resource groups, or town hall meetings can help employers better understand their employees’ caregiving experiences. Once an employer becomes aware of the challenges faced by caregiver employees and is resolved to address these issues, platforms like TCARE.ai can help companies develop effective and customized programs to meet the needs of caregivers. Some companies may already offer benefits that can be useful to caregivers, but their employees may not be aware of them. In other cases, there may be gaps that employers can fill without increasing costs to the company. In fact, when a company supports the health and well-being of its employees, it has a positive economic impact on the organization.

Paid Caring Leave

While many employers may believe that paid caregiver leave will increase costs, research indicates that paid leave can reduce costs by allowing caregivers to address smaller health issues before they can escalate and request extended FMLA leave. In addition, AARP reports that for every dollar a company invests in flextime and remote work options for employees, they can get $1.70 to $4.45 in return on investment. Paid caregiving leave with job security can improve financial outcomes for employees by helping them reduce the costs of caregiving, which can be debilitating for lower-income families and workers of color in particular. Caring leave can also improve health outcomes for carers and care recipients. Conformable Contagion Nation: A Comparison of Paid Sick Day Policies in 22 Countriessick adults have better health outcomes for acute conditions, such as heart attack or stroke, when they receive care from a loved one.

Support programs for caregivers

Paid leave for caregiving can improve outcomes for employees and employers, but it does not eliminate many of the challenges associated with caregiving, such as navigating the health care system, finding relevant information, and choosing a health care provider. When organizations provide comprehensive caregiver support programs in addition to paid care leave, employees are better equipped to manage their responsibilities at home and at work. According to an upcoming report from TCARE.ai, effective caregiver support programs can include the following benefits:

· Scheduling meetings

· Condition specific resources

· Personal insurance needs

· Family counseling and emotional support for caregivers

· Community care connectivity

· Recommendations of financial resources

· Identifying resource and service needs

· Meal or food delivery

Progressive grooming policies can help organizations create a person-first work environment that increases loyalty among current employees and attracts top talent. Employees who receive caregiving benefits are 30% more likely to stay with their employer, according to a report from AARP.

Organizational value of caregivers

Caregivers develop unique skills that can make them an asset in any workplace. A survey from Rutgers Center for Women in Business shows how carer skills can translate to the workplace. For example, caregivers have demonstrated improved empathy, emotional intelligence, collaboration and teamwork, which contribute to increased retention, engagement and innovation in the workplace. Caregivers also reported high levels of “cognitiveness,” the cognitive work required to maintain smooth and efficient business operations. These interpersonal and organizational skills help employees with care experience stand out among their peers as valuable team members and strong leaders.

Carers are an integral part of our communities, our families and our workplaces, but their hard work often goes unnoticed. Employers can do their part to recognize and support caregivers within their organization by providing effective programs and policies that create a people-first company culture for the benefit of all employees.

The Good beings The blog supports the critical health and well-being of all people, to raise awareness, reduce stigma and discrimination, and change public discourse. The Well Beings campaign was launched in 2020 by WETA, the flagship PBS station in Washington, DC, starting with the Youth Mental Health Project, followed by the 2022 documentary series. Ken Burns presents Hiding in Plain Sight: Youth Mental Illness, a film by Erik Ewers and Christopher Loren Ewers (Now streaming on the PBS app). WETA continues its award-winning Well Beings campaign with the upcoming documentary film Careexecutive produced by Bradley Cooper and Lea Pictures, premiering in 2025 on PBS.

For More information: #WellBeings #WellBeingsLive WellBeings.org. You are not alone. If you or someone you know is in crisis, whether or not they are thinking about suicide, please call, text or chat to 988 to speak to a trained crisis counselor. To reach the Veterans Crisis Line, dial 988 and press 1, visit VeteransCrisisLine.net to chat online or send a message to 838255.