Understanding the Caregiving Crisis and How It Impacts Your Business
As baby boomers leave the workforce, an increasing number of employees find themselves caring for aging parents. For employees with children, the stress and commitment of caring for older relatives can be overwhelming. This is especially true now, as the pandemic continues to threaten the health and safety of Americans. While the COVID-19 vaccine provides some relief, many caregivers still worry about the chance of transmission.
Caregiving Crisis
With an estimated population of 73 million Americans, Baby Boomers make up a large part of the U.S. population. In fact, Baby Boomers outnumber Gen X by 4.36 million. By the year 2030, 1 in 5 U.S. residents will be at or above retirement age and many will require care. Unfortunately, the U.S. does not have enough caregivers for aging adults. This leaves much of the responsibility on relatives.
Six out of ten caregivers work at a regular job throughout part (if not all) of their caregiving experience. 56% work at a full-time job. Many of these employees have small children at home as well.
Caregivers perform multiple tasks including:
- Acting as an advocate for older adults
- Managing health insurance claims
- Communicating and coordinating care
- Providing transportation to and from doctor visits
- Maintaining medical equipment
- Helping older adults with self-care and daily activities
- Administering medications and injections
- Performing first aid and wound care
With so much on their plate, it’s no surprise that caregivers experience higher levels of stress in the workplace. This can affect productivity and cause employees to become disengaged in their work. Over time, employees may find the stress of balancing work and caregiving too much to handle.
Around 40% of family caregivers leave their job. This is bad news for employers already dealing with a high rate of employee turnover and a small pool of quality candidates to choose from.
Supporting Caregiver Employees
Although employers cannot eliminate all of the challenges of caregiving, they can provide much needed support to their caregiver employees. Employers should start by analyzing their current benefits plan and policies to ensure they meet the needs of all employees. It’s also important to make sure employees understand the benefits available to them. Many employers are surprised to learn how little their employees know about their current benefits.
Employers may want to consider providing additional benefits as well. Employee discount programs help employees ensure they always have food for themselves and their loved ones. Employers should also consider extending benefits to the family members of employees. This can significantly reduce employee caregiver stress and may help employers improve their rate of retention.
Please contact us for information about health insurance benefits for employees and their loved ones.
