Speaking from personal experience, I can say with confidence that suddenly having to care for close relatives can be overwhelming. You have little time for anything else and often feel overwhelmed and empty. Although everyone has good advice, but I myself am often unsure of what I can do.
My motto is that I want to help, but I can’t take on everything because I also have to look after myself and my own family.
I would like to make a plea to companies to support employees who have family members in need of care, in order to ensure continued employment and maintain high productivity.
Demographic change and its effects
According to forecasts by Statistics Austria, the population will grow by 5.5% over the next 10 years. However, the number of people over 65 will also increase.
This development means that we need to rethink how we treat and support the ageing population. At the same time, we must consider the burden on the generation that has or will have relatives in need of care. If the forecasts are correct, the burden on the working population will increase due to both family commitments, and caregiving responsibilities.
There are ways to relieve this burden on employees. I have summarised these for you today:
Open communication & awareness
Encourage open discussion about caregiving and foster a supportive work environment where employees feel comfortable expressing their needs.
Examples include targeted discussion groups, meetings focusing on work-life balance/care, confidential one-to-one appointments, etc.
Flexible working hours and mobile working
Allow flexible working hours and/or the option to work from home. This helps employees to better balance their care responsibilities with their work more effectively and eliminates the need to travel to the office, which is particularly beneficial if the commute is long.
Care leave and family care leave
Consider offering the option of taking care leave or family care leave. Proactively inform and educate your employees about these options.
This enables employees to focus entirely on caring for a loved one for a set period of time before returning to work full-time.
Care advice and support
Provide care advisors or guides to help employees with questions about care and organising care services. These advisors can be either internal employees who have experienced similar situations affected themselves or external partners.
Cooperation with care services
Work with local care services to provide employees with quick access to professional support and advice. (e.g. Hilfswerk, Volkshilfe, etc.)
My conclusion
Finally, I would like to emphasise that supporting employees with relatives who need care increases their well-being and promotes loyalty and productivity within the company.
By working zogether, we can create a working environment that considers the needs of all employees ensuring long term success.
