2021 was the year of the caregiver. These last few years have shown us just how much work our caregiving colleagues put in as they take care of family members. At Wellthy, we’ve witnessed a collective, growing recognition of the caregiving crisis, and we’ve seen employers step up in incredible ways to support their people.
But we still have a long way to go. Caregiving continues to be a lonely, isolating experience for so many working adults, and stigma around caregiving can still permeate all types of workplaces.
Whether real or perceived stigma, employees don’t often speak up about their care situation at work. They fear that admitting to caregiving could undermine their career trajectory or make them seem less committed. While it’s become commonplace to talk about our kids at work, it’s far less common to hear about the day-to-day challenges of a co-worker who is taking care of a parent with dementia, their child’s special needs, or perhaps a spouse with an ongoing medical condition.
The stigma around caregiving makes it hard for employees to reach out when they need help and to utilize relevant company resources. Making efforts to de-stigmatize caregiving within your organization can help build a caring culture that enables all employees to thrive at work.
Here are five actionable tips for de-stigmatizing caregiving in the workplace.
Working from home has given us moments of vulnerability across our companies. We’ve all seen a few fun guests in the background of Zoom meetings, like a child or a pet walking across a keyboard. These moments have been welcome distractions and made senior leaders relatable to everyone in the company.
Senior leadership sets the tone for the rest of the organization. If employees see senior leaders opening up about their responsibilities outside of work, they’ll feel more comfortable sharing their struggles too. It’s crucial to show vulnerability and caring to ensure that employees know others are dealing with similar challenges.
Many individuals who care for loved ones don’t label their situation as “caregiving,” and therefore don’t take advantage of resources that might be helpful to them. For some, caring for aging loved ones is an unspoken cultural expectation, while others simply may not recognize the extra tasks and emotional responsibility they have taken on. In fact, caregiving organization, ARCHANGELs, found that 50% of caregivers don’t identify with the term.
Raising awareness about caregiving is a great strategy for showing support to employees who may be in caregiving situations without realizing it and for creating a safe space to open up about their needs.
In trying to reach this population, positioning helpful benefits and resources “caregiving benefits” may not resonate. Rather than referring to “caregivers,” try to speak to the specific situations a person may be navigating: ie, “employees managing chronic health conditions,” “parents of children with special needs,” or “employees caring for an aging parent or relative.”
Stories connect employees and help demonstrate your organization’s commitments. If you are dedicated to de-stigmatizing caregiving in the workplace, use the following strategies to utilize the power of storytelling to empower caregivers:
Employee resource groups have a positive impact on employees. Connecting with other caregivers in the organization can make employees feel less alone. In addition, the collective nature of ERG’s can ensure that all caregivers have their voices heard on important company policies and procedures.
It’s essential to back up your words with policies and benefits that support your employees. Caregivers need benefits that allow for flexibility at work. Here are some ideas to rethink your company’s policies and benefits:
Caregiving isn’t a new experience. It’s just become harder to ignore at work.
De-stigmatizing caregiving will help all of your team members feel more appreciated, even if they don’t take advantage of all of the resources your company provides. Taking small steps towards celebrating your employees for what they do inside and outside of work will make a significant impact on your company culture.
Seeing the culture change can take time, but we know your organization has what it takes.