Elder care 'to become bigger issue in flexible working debate'

Almost as many men have elder care responsibilities as women which suggests this will become a mainstream issue for organisations in the near future,  according to a survey by childcare and elder care provider My Family Care.

My Family Care's Working Parents and Carers Flexible Working survey 2011 found that, while childcare responsibilities were divided 80 per cent to 20 per cent between women and men, 40 per cent of people with elder care responsibilities and 60 per cent of women had elder care responsibilities.

The report says: “This reflects a different norm for carers, with men being as likely as women to be the primary carer in the case of a dependent parent or partner. With eldercare responsibility set to grow in line with the demographic changes in the UK, supporting working parents and carers will become a mainstream issue.”

The survey of over 1,400 parents and adult dependent carers shows more mothers than ever before work full time and that flexible working and employer support are critical to them.

When asked “How happy are you with your work/life balance based on your current working pattern?”, just over 40% were Happy or Very Happy. However, the majority are not happy with their work/life balance with 30% who said they were unhappy or very unhappy.

There was a strong link between happiness with a working pattern and commitment to an employer. Sixty-four per cent of those who are ‘very happy’ with their working pattern are ‘really committed’ to their employer, while only 23% of those ‘very unhappy’ with their working pattern feel the same way.

Sixty-six per cent of those ‘very happy’ feel they are very productive while only 29% of the ‘very unhappy’ group said they feel the same. How valued an employee feels showed even greater polarisation, with over 85 per cent of those who said they were ‘very happy’ with their working pattern feeling valued by their employer, while only 25 per cent of those who were ‘very unhappy’ with their working pattern feeling the same way.

However, many people were worried flexible working would impact negatively on their career.

Whilst those working part-time are more likely to express happiness with work life balance, high on the list of other workplace factors that also link with happiness were:

- True flexibility in the where and when of work (based on trust and autonomy)

- Supportive managers and colleagues, and

- Enabling technology

One very clear message which came out of the research was the pivotal role played by line managers. Respondents really appreciated a manager who appears to understand the need for flexibility. The other resounding message was the perceived unfairness of inconsistency across an organisation.

Many of those surveyed said it wasn’t possible to complete their work in their contracted hours. They felt that If they were not working, then they were caring. This is a cause of pressure and stress to many. Many of those working part-time said that even though they are paid part-time they work longer hours to get the job done. This was a polarising issue as many readily accept that this is a reasonable trade-off for the flexibility that they have, whilst some express a degree of resentment over the perceived unfairness.

Parents who had a good support network were happiest with their work life balance. A supportive partner and shared domestic workload were strongly linked to happiness with work/life balance. Over 45 per cent of respondents said they could rarely or never rely on close relatives or a support network to help out.

Commute times and inconvenient pickup and drop off times were also a big issue and made working from home – formally or informally – a plus for employee wellbeing and productivity.

Some 85 per cent of parents said they needed occasional extra help when their regular care was unavailable and 33% of those responsible for eldercare also do. Over 50 per cent said they needed emergency care for five days or more per year.

Thirteen per cent take sick leave when care breaks down. As care breakdowns will happen multiple time per year, there are obvious implications for employers’ absenteeism rates, says My Family Care.

Respondents said the most useful benefits would be back-up care and on-site nurseries.

My Family Care is hosting a series of webinars for HR and Diversity leaders to explore its results together with internal practitioner in leading organisations during October and to look for ways forward.