The Billion Dollar
Employee Crisis
www.AgingInfoUSA.com
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
Presented by
Sue Salach
Author of
Along Comes Grandpa
And
If I Walked In Her Shoes
Caregiving Resources for People
Living in the Real World©
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
Caregiver
Demographics
66% Female 44% Male Median Age: 48
 Median Income: $60,300
Lifestyle:
 50% are working full time and are in need of
easy access to products and resources to
assist them not only in their caregiving
responsibilities but in their personal life as
well.

Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
Issues in Targeting Employee
Caregivers to offer help
•
•
•
•
Caregivers do not self-identify
Stigma/fear of job loss or demotion
Aging network can be confusing and
intimidating
Shortage of affordable homes and
community-based services and supportive
housing
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
Identifying Caregivers
Employee Observations:
 Taking time PTO for things other than
vacation/sick leave
 Unusually distracted during work hours
 Unusual increase in time on their work or
personal phone during work hours
 Coming in late
 Leaving early
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
What is the impact of
caregiving on your
business?
Statistics from the MetLife Mature Market
Institute and SHRM on how this rapidly
growing issue impacts businesses.
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
A Growing
Epidemic


According to the Society of Human Resource
Management (SHRM), over 90% of companies
surveyed expect an increase in the number of
employees caring for elderly relatives
The percentage of adult children providing
personal care or financial assistance to a parent
has more than tripled over the past 15 years
◦ This currently represents a 1/4 of adult children, mainly
Baby Boomers.
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Recruitment,
Retention and
Training
At any given time, more than 21% of the
workforce is dealing with a caregiving situation.
 33% of caregivers decrease the number of hours
they work
 29% quit their job or retire early
 22% take a leave of absence
 20% change their job status or go part-time

Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
Lost Productivity




53% of caregivers admit that their job
performance is negatively affected
84% make care giving related phone calls during
business hours
68% arrive late or leave early
67% take time off from work during the day
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
Increased Healthcare Cost
Even when your employees are caring for someone
not covered by your health plan, YOUR
healthcare cost can go up.
 75% of working caregivers report an adverse
affect on their own health
 50% report 8 additional visits per year to a
health care provider (for themselves) as a result
of their care giving responsibilities
 22% report a significant impact on their own
health
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
Key Findings
•The total estimated cost to employers for fulltime employees with intense caregiving
responsibilities is $17.1 billion
•The average cost per employee for those with
intense caregiving responsibilities is $2,441
•The total estimated cost to employers for all
full-time, employed caregivers is $33.6 billion
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
Providing Workplace Solutions can:
•Educate employees and managers
on this work/life issue
•Provide access to an expert in
aging and caregiver services
•Build a personal library of
caregiving resources and strategies
for employees
•Defuse crises with heads-up
options and strategies
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
Create a Policy for
Caregiver Communication




Clearly communicate that sharing work/family
balance issues is encouraged
Share information on upcoming seminars with
your employees via team meeting, email or
group calendar
Encourage co-workers who may be the confidant
of an employee caregiver to share concerns with
Manager/HR
Assistance with priority setting
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA,
LLC
What benefits do
eldercare programs
typically offer?
Work time flexibility
 Phone or Internet-based resources and referrals
 Face-to-face consulting
 Educational activities like on-site seminars and
health fair kiosks
 Providing a range of decision-support services
 Contracting with Elder Care specialists to provide
advice to their workforce.

Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
Necessity of
Seminars and Events
•Educate employees on work/life issues
•Provide access to an expert in aging
and caregiver services
•Build a personal library of caregiving resources
and strategies for employees
•Defuse crises with heads-up options and
strategies
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
Link to Established Resources
Connect your employees directly to our
online directory of health and wellness
providers from your intranet.
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
Managers Support is Vital
Empowerment and Encouragement
 Set aside time to listen to the employee
 Refer them to the HR department for resources
 Connect them with other caregivers

It could be any of us in that
situation at any given time
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What is the return on investment
(ROI)?
The most valuable
return on investment
for an eldercare
program is employee
retention.
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
What is the return on investment
(ROI)?
Since 1996, it has been
reported that
every $1 spent on
eldercare programs
gets a return of
$3 - $5 in productivity,
retention and reduced
absenteeism.
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
How much is unmanaged eldercare
in the workplace really
costing your company

47% of HR professionals report
seeing an increase in the number
of employees dealing with elder
care issues over the last several
years.
•Companies without eldercare benefits stand to lose
$2,500 a year per caregiving employee.
•Absenteeism is the number one problem among
employees having caregiving responsibilities.
•Only 25 % of organizations offer elder care benefits.
*Source: Society for Human Resource Management's
2003 Eldercare Survey,
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
Size doesn’t matter!
Whether your
company has
5 employees or 5,000
employee caregiving
issue will affect your
productivity and
bottom line.
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
Is Your
Company
Prepared for
the tsunami
heading your way?
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC
AgingInfoUSA
651 S Sutton Rd,
Ste 204
Streamwood, IL 60107
(847) 630-0381
www.AgingInfoUSA.com
Copyright©2012 AgingInfoUSA, LLC