Employer benefits

Caring for a loved one is hard work, and it’s even harder for those attempting to balance caregiver responsibilities with a full or part-time job. According to Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, more than 1 in 6 Americans assist with the care of a family member or friend. In addition, caregivers working at least 15 hours per week indicated that this assistance significantly affected their work life.

Fortunately, employers are increasingly becoming aware of the emotional and financial strains placed on their employees with caregiving responsibilities. Forwardthinking employers like Starbucks, Home Depot and hundreds of others consider caregiving issues when designing their employee benefits. As more employers recognize that caregiving responsibilities can have a direct impact on employee engagement, productivity and even absence rates, they are providing a number of benefits to assist with these challenges. All too often though, caregiver benefits are not well promoted, and as a result, remain unknown to employees.

It may be of benefit to ask your human resources or benefits manager whether your employer offers any assistance for working caregivers. A few examples of helpful resources include the following:

Back-up Care Programs Employer-subsidized vetted alternative child and/or adult care in response to an emergency, unexpected event or disruption in regular care. This benefit will typically reimburse for a certain number of hours of care per year.

Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) Employer-sponsored benefit that offers free and confidential assessments, short-term counseling and resources to employees. This includes referrals and recommendations for Work/Life issues such as child and adult care assistance. This benefit can be of great use to not only locate resources for home care for a child or adult, but it can also provide counseling resources for the stress one may be feeling as a family caregiver. Often employees’ household members and eligible dependents can receive EAP benefits as well. Work/Life Services Employer-sponsored benefit that offers free information, resource and referral services for child care, elder care, pet care, convenience, legal and/or financial services related to employees’ every day practical needs.

Employee Discount Portal Online platform that provides employees with access to a variety of products and services from national and local companies at a discounted rate (for example, movie tickets and home care).

Be sure to check with your employer to better understand what benefits may be available to assist you with your caregiver needs. If you are an older adult interested in receiving home care services, you may want to check whether your children’s employers provide any of these benefits.