Fostering Supportive Workplaces: Empowering Caregivers

In today's fast-paced workplaces, the need to create supportive environments to cater to the physical and mental wellbeing of our diverse groups of people is more critical than ever. One such group that is becoming increasingly significant in terms of its representation in the workforce is caregivers.

What is caregiving?

Often overlooked and underestimated, caregiving forms the cornerstone of many individuals' lives. Caregiving spans various life stages and involves investing a significant part of one's day to care for another person regularly. It encompasses roles such as caring for children, the elderly or individuals with critical illnesses or disabilities, pet parenting, and even caring for caregivers. Then there is the "sandwich generation" - typically in their 40s-50s, tasked with caring for both elderly parents and young children.

This balancing act of caregiving is undeniably challenging as it involves navigating and balancing multiple responsibilities at once.

Why must organizations care?

Caregivers face diverse challenges, including financial strain, meeting professional aspirations, and maintaining personal well-being. Managing medical appointments, transportation, and caregiving tasks amid usual work and home duties adds to the stress and leads to burnout.

Each caregiving category also presents unique challenges, like the varying needs between new parents, parents of teenagers, single parents, stepparents, or parents of children with special needs.

According to studies, “employee-caregivers" represent over half of the workforce. Without adequate support, this could significantly impact the labor market and economies globally. With populations ageing in several parts of the world, the number of caregivers continues to be on a rise and over the coming few years, there’s a global risk of losing multi billion dollars in GDP due to caregivers exiting the workforce.

In India specifically, since the pandemic, 60% Indians have called out ‘providing home-care’ a significant responsibility. Additionally, 40% of Indians assumed caregiving duties for the first time during the pandemic.

This highlights the need for organizations to provision for caregiver-friendly policies and initiatives.

Building and shaping the care economy

Corporations hold significant influence and resources that can be harnessed to positively impact the care economy in India. Some key areas where corporations can contribute and lead by example are:

1.???? Support structures: Enablement such as onsite daycare centers, nursing rooms, and medical facilities can help their people efficiently balance caregiving responsibilities with work-related aspirations and enable them to perform better at work.?

2.???? Flexible and inclusive policies and benefits: Implementing family-friendly workplace policies and benefits is crucial. By curating and offering flexible work hours and benefits to support all types of caregiving needs such corporations can support their people in balancing work and caregiving responsibilities. Such policies not only help caregivers manage their duties more effectively but also foster a supportive and inclusive work environment.

3.???? Building Niche Caregiving Communities: It is essential for caregivers to feel safe and included. Organizations can play a pivotal role in driving change and raising awareness by introducing niche communities for people with similar lived and shared experiences. For example, creating support groups for single parents or caregivers to the elderly or to people with special needs provides a safe space for people to connect, network, share their experiences, and seek support when needed. These communities can help reduce the isolation that caregivers often feel and offer practical advice and emotional support.

4.???? Partnerships with Experts: Collaborating with experts across different caregiving paths can significantly amplify the impact of corporate initiatives in the care economy. For instance, corporations can explore partnerships with institutions that provide elder care services such as nursing attendants, home visits by doctors, and physiotherapy at discounted or subsidized rates. These collaborations can enhance the support available to caregivers, ensuring they have access to quality care services without financial strain.

5.???? Psychologically Safe Environments: Psychological safety is the ability to be able to voice concerns, speak up and ask for support without the fear of retaliation or judgement. Creating these environments where people can feel seen, heard and that they belong should be one of the top priorities for leaders and supervisors.

Caring for caregivers – a collective responsibility

Building a caregiver-inclusive workplace requires collective effort from all of us. Caregivers thrive in a culture where they feel understood and can express their caregiving needs and flexible schedule requirements without fear of judgment or negative perceptions.

Our Better to Belong research suggests that when people are Net Better Off at work, they are twice as likely to feel like they belong and can unlock 5X more of their potential. People are Net Better Off when their holistic wellbeing is taken care of, across dimensions, including emotional and mental, relational, physical, financial, purposeful and employable.

As leaders and advocates, we must foster environments where caregiving responsibilities are respected, and the wellbeing of caregivers is prioritized. By actively engaging in these supportive behaviors, non-caregivers can also contribute toward creating an inclusive and empowering workplace environment.