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How are you celebrating Family Caregivers Month?
We have a suggestion for you thanks to Ai-jen Poo.
ieadvocates
November 26, 2024
Working Caregivers-The Invisible Employees Newsletter
Brought to you by ieadvocates (invisible employee advocates)
How are you celebrating National Family Caregivers Month?
Thank you for being here! Happy Thanksgiving Holiday for those of you in the U.S.!
We apologize that we are one week behind in sending out our newsletter. We spent last week traveling and attending Caregiver Nation Summit sponsored by the National Alliance For Caregiving led by the fearless and very passionate Jason Resendez. It was a fascinating week advocating for caregivers and we will tell you about it in our next newsletter. We could not think of a better way to celebrate the millions of caregivers in the United States during “National Family Caregivers Month” in November. If you have not had a chance yet to take a moment and learn more about this important advocacy campaign, please do. As you will find on the Caregiver Action Network website, honoring caregivers this month will:
Raise awareness of family caregiver issues
Celebrate the efforts of family caregivers
Educate family caregivers about self-identification
Increase support for family caregivers
Reduce feelings of isolation
There are many ways for all of us to bring shared strengths together to support caregivers on their caregiver journey, especially working caregivers. If you have not thought of one yet, we encourage you to check out this issue’s recommended media’s podcast. In this episode, guest Ai-jen Poo encourages us of something we can do right now:
“Make a list of five people who you think might be caregivers or know are caregivers, and they could be family members or friends, neighbors, and just reach out to those people and say, “Hey, how are you doing? Do you need anything?” And just kind of be proactive about your support for the caregivers in your life.
And then make another list of five people who you would want to support you, either as a caregiver or if you were in need of care, and to start to think about how you may reach out to those people, hey you really are important to me….. ”
The fact that you are reading this newsletter is a another great step in honoring caregivers and celebrating this month. Please be more aware and informed about the caregiver crisis that our country is facing and help our caregivers become more visible and supported.
Whether you’re an employer, business manager, HR, or a working caregiver, this newsletter offers valuable insights along with win-win-win simple solutions to help implement meaningful change for organizations, employees who are caregivers, and their care recipients.
Table of Contents
In the news:
Latest research, events, and articles that are making an impact for working caregivers and their employers.
Your Employees Are Also Caregivers. Here’s How to Support Them.
By Gretchen Gavett. Harvard Business Review November 13th, 2024
If you have been a loyal reader of our newsletter, you already know that many of the employees in the workplace today are also caregivers. There are plenty of surveys and research that have reinforced this growing trend. The study referred to in this article (Harvard Business School’s Managing the Future of Work project) stated that “73% of people surveyed in the U.S. reported having some type of current caregiving responsibility. This may involve caring for children, parents, siblings, other relatives, friends, neighbors, or all of the above.” With that many employees caregiving, you could assume that employers must be fully aware and concerned about the impact it may be having on their working caregivers but unfortunately that does not seem to be the case.
“According to study authors Joseph B. Fuller and Manjari Raman, however, “employers do not measure and thus do not realize the extent to which employees are burdened by care.” While only 24% of employers said caregiving affects employee productivity, a whopping 80% of employees said it does — though they’re likely not willing to admit this publicly for fear of hurting their careers.”
The article shares five strategies that employers can implement that can support their working caregivers. One of these in particular stresses that employers need to recognize that caregivers make great employees. Many caregiver advocates have been advocating this as well and it is further supported in the article from a reference to a survey of caregivers from the Rutgers Center for Women in Business.
It is well known that the COVID-19 pandemic revealed quite a bit about the needs of working caregivers. In particular, caregivers of aging adults or children or both are looking to their employer for support, and this trend is growing significantly. This article gives a good picture of the current state of the caregiver crisis and how employers are starting to realize it.
“There’s a growing momentum around caregiving support”, said Carole Mendoza, vice president of benefits at Voya Financial in New York City. “With more employees speaking up about their unique needs and more visibility of those needs post-COVID, we know more about what support employees need to be most productive at work.”
The article also shared that there is data indicating employees are more likely to stay with their employer when they provide benefits that directly support their caregiving responsibilities and challenges such as access to health spending and savings account and comprehensive caregiver planning resources to name a few.
The article also shined a spotlight on a few companies that are really making an impact with their working caregivers:
“Midland, Mich.-based chemical company Dow, for instance, announced in August new benefits to provide its 19,000 North American employees with caregiver support. A caregiving benefit from provider Cariloop was among the new perks it rolled out. Through the platform, Dow employees can access a content library and a suite of digital tools to utilize when planning and managing the care of a family member. Through Cariloop, employees also have access to “care coaches” who can guide them through their caregiving journey and assist with researching and vetting resources.”
“Both Hilton and Voya offer Wellthy—a service that matches employees with a dedicated care coordinator to help them care for loved ones who are aging, chronically ill, disabled, or in need of medical care.”
“Voya also provides a special employee assistance plan that matches employees and their family members with clinicians who have the experience to provide insight into the disabilities and caregiving community, as well as backup in-home care for children and older adults who need support ordinarily provided by the employee or someone else.”
Did you know? (Read our blog):
Our blog brings you knowledge, personal and researched, to raise your awareness and empathy about working caregivers and caregiving.
Paying Rosalynn Carter’s Legacy of Care Forward (Blog 11/19/24)
A year ago, on November 19th, 2023, with her family by her side, Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter passed away peacefully in her home in Plains, Georgia. She was 96 years-old. The serenity that this peaceful scene invokes, gives no indication of her fearless advocacy for caregiving reform that spanned most of her lifetime.
Mrs. Carter’s Caregiving Legacy
Part of our personal mission in writing in this space is to enlighten our readers regarding the history and current challenges around caregiving in this country. Although we mention Rosalynn Carter in some of our other materials, we would be remiss not to take the time to pay full tribute to her unwavering dedication to the caregiving cause. Perhaps her most quoted statement regarding family caregiving is as follows:
“There are only four kinds of people in the world. Those who have been caregivers, those who are currently caregivers, those who will be caregivers, and those who will need caregivers.”
--- Rosalynn Carter
People and Companies In the spotlight:
Our podcast puts a spotlight on guests who are making a significant difference in the working caregiver space.
Episode 6: The Silent Struggles Of Working Caregivers: Insights and Solutions With Julian Hayes
Episode 6: The Silent Struggles Of Working Caregivers: Insights and Solutions With Julian Hayes
In this episode of Working Caregivers: The Invisible Employees, we welcome Julian Hayes, a writer and advocate for working caregivers, to discuss the often-overlooked challenges faced by this silent workforce. From navigating the emotional, financial, and mental strains of caregiving to offering practical strategies for employers, Julian shares insights rooted in personal experience and professional expertise. This conversation highlights why organizations must address caregiving as a critical workplace issue and how doing so benefits both employees and businesses. His Forbes article: Employee Caregiving: A Silent Pandemic CEOs Must Pay Attention To can be found here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/julianhayesii/2024/06/29/employee-caregivers-a-silent-pandemic-ceos-must-pay-attention-to/
Stories From Real Working Caregivers:
Actual working caregivers share their stories.
Consuela Marshall is a Caregiver Coach and Consultant and started Finding A Foothold, an aging and caregiving consultation service. She is also author of the book Fall Prevention: Planning Not To Fall. She has over 29 years of experience as an Occupational Therapist (OT) providing care to individuals with disabilities and disorders who have sustained injuries which negatively affect their level of independence with self-care, mobility and ADL (Activities of Daily Living) tasks. She is a graduate of Louisiana State University Medical Center and has worked on Skilled Nursing Units, Inpatient Rehab Units and home health setting. She is also a Fall Prevention Specialist, Certified Aging In Place Specialist, Certified Dementia Practitioner, Certified Geriatric Care Professional and a former Board member of the Louisiana Assisted Living Association. In addition to her professional experience as an Occupational Therapist is the wealth of knowledge and learning gained from direct hands-on experience as primary caregiver to her mother who had several strokes, to an “aunt” who had Alzheimer’s and to a daughter born with a congenital birth defect. She also owned and operated a 6 bed personal care home for the elderly.
“As a therapist going into the home, almost immediately, especially in those who are new to caregiving, after their loved one had a sudden downward spiral in their health due to an illness or injury, the first thing, as I’m entering the door as a therapist, is “How soon do you think I can go back to work? I gotta be back to work on Friday. Do you think I could go back to work on Friday?” And I’m like, “Well, look. I’m getting here to see your mom first…. And they’re already saying, “I’ve already been off work two weeks because I had to sit in the hospital with my mom, and I’m out of PTO. I’ve gotta be back at work on Monday”. I would see some that have quit jobs and are at home because the discharge planner (from the hospital) said, “You know, your mom can’t be home by herself.”
“I am a better version of who I could have ever been because I was a caregiver….I’ve looked at every opportunity of caregiving as a way that I’ve been enriched…. And I can say now that would I’ve traded it? No. Because I know what the outcome is. I know who I am now and who I am now is a product of having been in the trenches, done the hard work, seen the little light in the little moments that were sparks that kept me coming back. You know, all those things you don’t get if you’re on the outside looking in…. So, I’m just grateful that I had the opportunity to be a caregiver…. And that’s what I’m hoping that other caregivers can see that this is an enrichment journey for everybody involved.”
Consuela Marshall
Recommended media content:
We explore and share with you diverse media illuminating the dynamics and narratives within the care economy - from insightful podcasts to thought-provoking books and engaging videos.
PODCASTS
How to care for the people who take care of us (w/ Ai-jen Poo) How to Be a Better Human Podcast. A TED Original Podcast January 2023 Activist, and MacArthur Genuis, Ai-jen Poo believes that caring for others is one of the fundamental acts that make us human. But from nannies to elder-care workers, house cleaners to living assistants, single parents and beyond, globally, caretakers do not earn fair wages or recognition for their essential, life-giving labor. The President of the National Domestic Workers Alliance, Ai-jen explains how society undervalues domestic work, and provides a framework on how we can start a conversation about the future of care for our loved ones – and ourselves. For the full text transcript, visit go.ted.com/BHTranscripts
VIDEOS
Next Question Podcast with host Katie Couric: The Cost of Caregiving with Capital One’s Celia Edwards Karam, Chris Punsalan, and Adrienne Glusman February 29, 2024. This episode was produced in partnership with @CapitalOne , and recorded live at the @capitalonecafe in Herald Square in New York City. In it, Katie and a panel of caregivers explore the vast spectrum of challenges facing caregivers — those of us who find ourselves taking care of a loved one when they can no longer take care of themselves. As our panelists @ChrisPunsalanTV , Adrienne Glusman, and @CapitalOne's own Celia Edwards Karam share from personal experience, it can be a terrifying, overwhelming task — from the sudden windfall of money decisions and the struggle to sort out a workable financial plan at a time of immense uncertainty, to the psychological burden of simultaneously caring for a loved one while mentally preparing to lose them. But there are also moments of grace, connection, and priceless time together that will stay with our panelists for a lifetime. This conversation is both a practical guide and, we hope, a source of real inspiration and comfort for navigating an enormously challenging phase — one that most of us will face at some point in our lives.
BOOKS
As our aging population continues to increase, many desire to continue living in their homes for the long term—Aging in Place. This dream of remaining in the house is an achievable goal but one that can be quickly disrupted by a fall. Falls in the home are happening at alarming rates, changing the lives of many aging older adults and their families. There is good news: Falls can be prevented.
"Fall Prevention: Planning Not To Fall", written by Consuela Marshall, offers practical, actionable tips to help older adults and their families reduce fall risks before they occur. It addresses the everyday hazards that cause falls, empowering readers to make their homes safer and make changes in their behaviors that can reduce the risk of falls.
The book contains a fall prevention tip for each day of the month (thirty-one tips). Each tip is coupled with a real-life story that many can identify with and recognize how quickly a fall can occur, often during everyday activities --and be inspired to take proactive steps to avoid life-altering consequences.
"Fall Prevention: Planning Not To Fall" is a valuable guide for families seeking to keep their loved ones safe at home.
We want to thank Doreen M. Grembowitz who took the time to read our book and provide a thoughtful review!
Very important read for employers in today's society with the increase of employees who are working caregivers. This book explains the impact that an employee who is a working caregiver, can have on their bottom line with increased physical and mental health issues for the caregiver, as well as increased recruitment and employee replacement costs for the company. Book presents fictional case studies and how employers can assist working caregiver employees with their personal challenges!
Order your copy of Working Caregivers-The Invisible Employees book here. If you want to order a quantity of books for your leadership team and employees, contact us directly about discount pricing.
Order Working Caregivers-The Invisible Employees Book here
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