You may believe you don’t have many employees in your organization who are juggling work and caregiving. It is understandable since most caregivers don’t want their employer to know they are sleep deprived, stressed out, and putting their own health and well-being on the back burner because of the demands of caring for a loved one. Here are a few tips on how to identify working caregivers in order to help them stay more focused at work.
If an employee who has always maintained good attendance and not exceeded paid time off is suddenly calling in sick or requesting additional time off, it may be because they are a caregiver. An employee can find themselves in the role as a primary caregiver without warning and literally overnight. That unexpected call in the middle of the night announcing their parent has fallen, their sister was diagnosed with cancer, or the birth of a newborn with a heart defect will send their world spinning. There is also no guidebook on how to manage all of the tasks that will be required of them that take up as much time as another full time job. If you have noticed a change in an employee that indicates they could be taking time off because of caregiving, talk to them and find out what is going on and let them know the resources your organization has to support them.
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We are learning more and more about how important it is to employees that they are able to be honest, forthcoming and truly themselves at work. We also know that employees who feel they have a social support network at their workplace are more likely to stay at that job and report higher rates of satisfaction and loyalty. Schedule a caregiver recognition event or caregiver education session to recognize and support working caregivers. Let them know they can speak freely about their struggle and that they won’t be punished or reprimanded for it.
Your most valuable employees are or will be struggling with the demands of caregiving. Data shows us the number of adults of all ages caring for a loved one will grow dramatically over the next 30 years. You can use these tips to identify working caregivers to soften the impact and keep them as happy and productive as possible.