Physicians Adult Daycare, Inc. reports that employers in the United States lose as much as $34 billion per year because of the absenteeism and lost productivity of workers who are also caregivers. Here’s an excerpt from the press release:
According to the July 2006 “Productivity losses to U.S. Business” report done by MetLife Mature Market Institute and National Alliance for Caregiving, MetLife Care giving Cost Study states U.S. Employers lose as much as $34 Billion a year due to worker caregivers. These losses are due to absenteeism and lost productivity of workers who are taking time off to take care of their elderly loved ones. Family caregivers comprise 13% of the workforce (Administration on Aging, DHHS, 2002).
National Alliance for Caregiving and AARP 2004 states that 59% of family caregivers who care for someone over the age of 18 either work or have worked while providing care. And 62% have had to make some adjustments to their work life, from reporting late to work to giving up work entirely. The 1998 Business Work Life Study also states that 37% of human resource directors did not feel that their organizations made a real and ongoing effort to inform employees of available assistance for managing work and family responsibilities.
According to Dr. Donna Wagner, Professor, Director of Gerontology Program, Towson University, “Although hard research does not exist to prove it, researchers in the field think that only 2% of employed family caregivers actually take advantage of the benefits their companies offer.
That last statistic is powerful. It the report is true, then 49 out of every 50 employed family caregivers ignore and therefore do without the help and support that is available to them through their employers!
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