Where should employers start?
Creating a family-friendly work environment requires a real commitment from the top. It’s the company’s culture, the unspoken rules, that really make the difference. If a company offers flextime but an employee’s supervisor won’t let them use it, it doesn’t do the employee — or the company — any good. If middle managers don’t see company executives ‘walk the talk’ of work-life balance, good programs may be ineffective. Provide training for your managers. Improve managers’ awareness of the issues surrounding aging and care giving, and help them examine their views on accommodating employees’ efforts to balance personal and family obligations with job responsibilities. Train managers to identify stress related to elder care giving. Let your employees know care giving is an important issue by highlighting information on available resources in employee newsletters and other communications.
Know your employees’ needs. How many employees actively care for aging relatives or expect to do so soon? What proportion of employees’ parents live in distant communities?
Also, take a lifecycle approach. Employees in various age groups have different needs regarding work-life balance. Remember to also communicate with employees without any dependent care needs by presenting elder care initiatives as part of your company’s commitment to work-life balance.
How can employers utilize local resources?
Provide information to employees by setting up an on-site family resource center containing newsletters, books, website addresses and videotapes, or maybe arranging services for direct supports (like geriatric care management or emergency backup homecare). Either way, the place to start is the local community. Contact the state unit on aging. The federal Administration on Aging website provides contacts in all 50 states. Another option is to research a potential consulting firm’s track record specific to elder care. Also, check with the Alliance of Work/Life Professionals at www.awlp.org.
The reality is that the aging of the American population and work force will affect every employer. Just five years ago, the U.S. Department of Labor predicted 151 million jobs in the nation by 2006, but only 141 million workers to fill them. As baby boomers fall ill and the work force is faced with the responsibility of caring for them, employers who invest now in making the workplace elder-care-friendly can avoid the loss of valuable employees with care-giving responsibilities.
M.J. Helms is the director of operations at the Ashton Group. Reach her at (706) 636-3343 or [email protected].
