Family Friendly Employers: Why Benefits Packages Need to Include Subsidized Elder Care to Support the Changing Workforce
February 21st, 2023 – Raleigh, NC – Companies across the country are recognizing the need to support employee caregiving responsibilities and are elevating their offerings to meet the changing needs of the modern workforce.
According to the National Alliance for Caregiving, 65.7 million Americans serve as family caregivers for an ill, elderly, or disabled relative. A large portion of those individuals are also working full-time jobs. These working caregivers are not getting the support they need from their employers.
Until now. Today, a group of thought leaders in the field of Human Resources gathered at the Raleigh Metro SHRM, one of the leading HR associations in the country, to discuss the future of what it means to be a “Family Friendly Employer”.
James H. Johnson Jr. Ph.D. at UNC’s Kenan-Flagler Business School notes that the gale force winds of demographic change are upon us and that these trends signal the need for a new way of doing business. Businesses that have taken a “my way or the highway” approach, will find themselves on the highway all by themselves.
According to the Care Report out of the Harvard Business School, many employers are simply not aware of their employees' caregiving responsibilities. Employers simply aren’t asking the right questions.
Being penalized for life responsibilities, through things like being passed over for a promotion, or given projects of lesser importance to work on, is a legitimate fear for many employees. These penalties disproportionately impact women and people of color.
Workplace policies and actions that foster accommodation and promote caregivers’ interests are going to be strategic imperatives for the future competitiveness of businesses. Creating family friendly workplaces is a step that businesses can take to ensure their sustainability as we move into the future. Comprehensive benefits packages are no longer merely a positive addition for companies to have, but are now a requirement for recruitment and retention of talent.
Efforts of the most family friendly employers in the Triangle include:
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Studies show that companies that invest in these offerings not only support their employees, but also see an increase in employee satisfaction and productivity. In addition, it helps them attract and retain top talent in a competitive job market. According to Family Forward NC, 44% of employees are considering quitting jobs because of caregiving needs. Supporting employees’ caregiving responsibilities is a way to address substantial issues like high turnover and productivity loss.
According to Alicia Parr, Founder and CEO of Performentor, a fractional HR firm “We work with a wide array of smaller employers who are experimenting with family-friendly benefits to maximize their team’s well-being and performance.” This enables these organizations to retain their highest-performing team members and build reputations as great places to work and grow.
According to Gallup, it costs a company $9,000 a year to keep each disengaged worker. This short-term loss has long-term benefits when we learn that it requires one-half to two times the employee's annual salary to replace them. Additionally, according to the National Alliance for Caregiving and AARP, 39% of caregivers leave their job to have more time to care for a loved one.
In partnership with CareYaya, leading Employee Benefits Plans can spend as little as $3,000 per employee to provide 1,000 hours of subsidized elder care benefits - ensuring workforce productivity, improved morale and retention of mid-career talent.
“CareYaya is proud to be at the forefront of this movement,” says CareYaya CEO Neal Shah. “Subsidized elder care is going to be the next big benefit that will sweep over the modern workplace. We’re proud to work with employers to offer industry-leading caregiver benefits packages, so that employees can feel supported in all aspects of their lives.”
About CareYaya: CareYaya is a technology platform offering on-demand, personalized home care booking services. CareYaya helps families taking care of senior citizens, disabled adults and special needs children, to find the care they need. Built in collaboration with major research universities and healthcare systems, it offers the only registry of college-educated caregivers and software that's free to use.
About Raleigh Metro SHRM: The leading HR association in North Carolina. RMSHRM is the proud recipient of 28 consecutive Superior Merit Awards, five Pinnacle awards, three SHRM Foundation Chapter Champion Awards and an NC SHRM Crown Award.
Strengthening organizational culture with engagement and retention strategies to help organizations achieve their business objectives.
1yFrom an employer's perspective, one of the challenges with traditional care models is the ability to simply and accurately track their investment toward this type of benefit. Your platform overcame that obstacle in an Uber-like way!