How Women Caregivers Can Thrive at Work During COVID
How Women Caregivers Can Thrive at Work During COVID Javascript must be enabled to use this site. Please enable Javascript in your browser and try again. × Search search POPULAR SEARCHES SUGGESTED LINKS Join AARP for just $9 per year when you sign up for a 5-year term. Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. Leaving AARP.org Website You are now leaving AARP.org and going to a website that is not operated by AARP. A different privacy policy and terms of service will apply.
Maintaining your employment means that you'll continue to contribute to your retirement, assuring your own financial security today and as you age.
Continuing health, life and disability insurance for yourself and your spouse and children as a workplace benefit ensures that you are covered for your own medical needs and that, if you pass away, your family will receive an inheritance.
With ongoing employment, you are more likely to qualify for loans or a mortgage that will help you support your loved one if you're providing financial contributions as a caregiver.
While we don't generally recommend tapping into your own retirement to pay expenses, explore whether any of the apply to you and will allow you to withdraw or take a loan without penalty. (Be prepared to learn that these laws have become much more restrictive in 2021.) Entertainment $3 off popcorn and soft drink combos See more Entertainment offers > Giving up a secure job with benefits should not be your first course of action. The average caregiving stint is four years, but leaving the workplace can make waves in your life that last well beyond that. And it can affect your finances for the rest of your life.
Caregiving and COVID Ways Women Can Thrive at Work and Home
Opting out of the workforce is not your only course of action
Alistair Berg/Getty Images It is not hard to believe most American family caregivers . In fact, over 29.2 million — a whopping 61 percent — hold down a job (or two) while caring for a loved one or friend. For years, there have been growing concerns about those caregivers leaving or losing employment due to family caregiving responsibilities. Add to that the so-called “caregiving cliff” — a time in the 2020s when it is expected there will be more people who need care than people able to provide it. Then last year, along came the coronavirus and everything changed. The pandemic instantaneously shed light on the plight of working caregivers and accelerated the need to make major changes in how our society supports them. All generations of of caregiving without adequate support systems and weathering the impacts of the pandemic. Since the virus outbreak, women have left the workforce at disproportionate rates — four times that of men. When the U.S. economy lost 140,000 net jobs in December, . By comparison, men gained 16,000 positions. Clearly, more economic pain is on the horizon for businesses, women and families. Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. Between the talk of and the long-anticipated caregiving cliff now sitting on our doorstep, this is the time for bold action. While policymakers and employers need to lead the charge, there are steps you can take as an individual to not just to survive this time but to help women workers thrive in the decades to come.Security first in the short term
Women are struggling. It's intense to be a care provider, worker and raiser of children (or grandchildren) during a pandemic. Last fall — when I was wearing my caregiver, attorney and momma hats simultaneously — was a marathon for me. Those hats get heavy when you wear them all at once, and life can suddenly seem like a pain in the neck! While I can certainly relate to the feeling that “something's got to give,” it's disappointing, but not surprising, to learn that surveyed in corporate America was considering resigning or “downshifting” careers as the events of 2020 unfolded. Last year wasn't my first time in the caregiving rodeo. During my first stint as a caregiver (for a parent with cancer), I lost my job when my family medical leave expired and I could not return to work full time. My mother was residing in a hospice house and at the end of her life when my medical leave hours ran out. Although I requested an accommodation, my employer said it was unable to “accommodate a reduced schedule due to client needs.” It was a and a setback that my family struggled greatly to recover from. In the 10 years since, workplaces have become more open to the plight of caregivers. And in just the past five years, workplace benefits and attention to caregiver-employee needs . You may not feel like you have options — I understand that completely. In the year I cared for my mother, my thoughts were: “If not me, then who?” and “No one will care for her like I do.” But I implore all working caregivers now to explore every available option before considering a workforce departure. Be flexible in your thinking about what you can accomplish — and about what you can put in someone else's hands.Understand your employer s work policies benefits
and accommodations your workplace offers is step one. If so-called respite care hours are provided, use them. If your employee assistance program offers a care coordination service, delegate to it. If flexible hours are an option, modify your schedule. And it's so important to talk to your supervisor about your situation and document all your conversations on the subject. At least one in three employed caregivers says that their supervisor is unaware that they provide care. Supervisors and managers cannot empathize and respond to the challenges you face unless they know what you're experiencing. Be transparent and clear about what would help you perform better at work and at home. or medication management services can take a lot off your plate. Sure, COVID restrictions have added challenges, but a conscientious helper who takes the necessary precautions will be worth their weight in gold. Understand that you cannot work two (or more) full-time jobs without burning out or getting sick yourself. And combining caregiving with a 40-plus-hour-a-week job and parenting/grandparenting duties is a recipe for burnout. Just adding caregiving to your life can cause financial strain (37 percent of working caregivers report moderate to high financial strain, and we can reasonably assume this number explodes for unemployed caregivers). Caregiving plus job loss is a devastation. Before you step away, consider the plus side of staying employed. Compared with the complex and emotional nature of caregiving, going to work can seem like a break. My office was my quiet haven last year, and my productivity was through the roof because I knew I'd get no work done at home while tending to my care recipient and homeschooling my little one!Maintaining your employment means that you'll continue to contribute to your retirement, assuring your own financial security today and as you age.
Continuing health, life and disability insurance for yourself and your spouse and children as a workplace benefit ensures that you are covered for your own medical needs and that, if you pass away, your family will receive an inheritance.
With ongoing employment, you are more likely to qualify for loans or a mortgage that will help you support your loved one if you're providing financial contributions as a caregiver.
While we don't generally recommend tapping into your own retirement to pay expenses, explore whether any of the apply to you and will allow you to withdraw or take a loan without penalty. (Be prepared to learn that these laws have become much more restrictive in 2021.) Entertainment $3 off popcorn and soft drink combos See more Entertainment offers > Giving up a secure job with benefits should not be your first course of action. The average caregiving stint is four years, but leaving the workplace can make waves in your life that last well beyond that. And it can affect your finances for the rest of your life.