The costs of the family caregiver crisis in America should be carried by the medical system and government agencies. But it is private corporations that are paying for volunteer caregivers as they care for their own family members. Employers pay up to $6,000 annually for EVERY employee-caregiver.

And it isn’t getting better. Every day in America 10,000 Baby Boomers have their 65^th birthday. That’s 3.65 million MORE people entering the time in their lives when relying some on family members is a cultural expectation.

But those family members are relying on their employers who are now picking up the tab as they care for their ageing loved ones.

Peter Williamson supports his ailing mother in many ways. Almost 2 decades of assisting her and he still asked the question recently “But am I actually considered a caregiver?”

Peter explained that his mom suffers from several chronic conditions, but he never really thought about himself as a caregiver. Like many others he just thought it was the right thing to do as a son who loves his mom.

Williamson, as a VP of a global firm, realized that since he wasn’t thinking of himself as a caregiver, he didn’t take advantage of benefits offered by his company for these workers with caregiving responsibilities. Once he changed his mindset, he started to see how burned out he was and how some help would make a big difference to his productivity, his health and how well he cared for his mother.

Currently, over 43 million Americans tend to family members based on the data from LIMRA. The AARP estimates that annually caregivers pay close to $7,000 out of their own pocket.

Caregiving is taxing both physically and emotionally. The Embracing Carers survey found that almost 60% of family caregivers need additional medical care or ongoing support for a mental health condition for themselves. About 55% say their physical health is getting worse, 54% say they their own medical needs are not being met because of a lack of time. Unsurprisingly, 47% of caregivers report feeling depressed.

So, it is not a wonder their employers are paying the price.

Employers are in a unique position. They can offer employee benefits, HR policies and additional resources to ease some of this dual employment stress. This dual employment stress is felt by those who have a paid job and an unpaid caregiver position, feeling torn both emotionally and with hectic schedules.

Some employers are already stepping up to try to make a difference for their employee-caregivers on staff. As a trendsetting organization, Starbucks launched their new caregiver benefit recently. Also, digital tools are being used by companies like Amgen and Brinker International to offer specific flexibility and benefits to their caregiving workers.

Perhaps, someday, the government or healthcare system will step forward and take responsibility to assist families with caregiving burdens. Culturally, America may stop seeing caregiving as a “family problem” and begin to see it as the societal issue it has become.

For now, employee-caregivers and their families mostly bear the burden alone. Employer provided backup care options are rare. Childcare is a universal need yet only 4% of employers offer employee benefits of backup childcare services. Elder care is even worse. Only 2% of American organizations of any size offer their employees backup elder care. (Source: Society for Human Resource Management)

Some policies exist. Yet, many companies find they are not being accessed. This is not because there are no dual-employed employees in their organizations. Workers either don’t see themselves as “caregivers” (yet, at least), or they don’t know about the policies and programs that are in place.

This breakdown in organizational communication keeps the majority of employee-caregivers from accessing assistance they need. When employers ignore the fact that 30% of their staff is dual employed, or fail to communicate supportive policies with those employees, the burden of reduced productivity and other waste costs the organization. And not just money. Often dual-employed workers find they cannot manage the stress, the schedules or the torn loyalties so the result is the loss of a worker.

But there are steps organizations can take to support employee-caregivers and ultimately retain their valuable employees.

• Identify employee-caregiver responsibilities.
• Provide options for employee-caregivers to stay on the job and remain productive.
• Offer financial assistance as required.
• Develop logistical support systems, including technological applications
• Cultivate a culture of support where the loyalty to the company is not questioned when an employee maintains caregiving responsibilities

When an organization stops seeing the leave of absence as the only alternative for an employee-caregiver, employee retention goals can be met.

Organizations are starting to offer more innovative solutions like:

• Remote work opportunities
• Unlimited PTO
• Team shared sick time
• Employee resource groups
• Online networks

Mostly, the culture of organizations, and the country, must eventually accept this shift. This is the most significant change in the way we work in over 100 years. Employers must be more understanding of the needs of employee-caregivers. At 30% of the current workforce now, and growing every day, these valuable employees are the backbone of America’s workforce.

Becoming a CareWise™ organization raises the visibility of the available resources, supports the organizational cultural shift, and makes available the solutions for both the employer and the employee-caregiver.