Eldercare: Avoid Productivity Losses Through Effective Communications

• America is aging and many Americans are planning to delay retirement.
• Employees are feeling the effects of stress caused by eldercare-giving responsibilities.
• Employer-provided elder care programs are underutilized and poorly communicated.
• Employers are suffering from a silent productivity killer that will soon roar.

• Information and referral services for caregiving programs and facilities, as well as legal and estate planning referrals;
• Geriatric care management that provides individual elder evaluation and counseling;
• Time off and flexible work arrangement policies, such as family leave, flex time, job sharing and part-time work; and,
• Financial support, such as dependent care assistance programs and long-term care insurance.

1. The employee definition of "eldercare" varies.

   Employees conceive of "eldercare" in a variety of ways that may or may not represent what eldercare means.

   Implications: Employers must clarify for employees what eldercare is and must communicate more effectively what benefits are available.

2. Caregivers experience a period of evaluation before seeking employer- based resources. Denial about the burden of their caregiver activities may further delay accessing services.

   Many employees have the perception that caring for an elderly loved one is a personal matter that must be handled privately. Consequently, they may not rely on their corporate benefits programs as a primary resource for their caregiving needs.

   Implications: Communications that better define caregiver benefits may eliminate or shorten the employee's evaluation period, thereby increasing employee productivity.

3. Differences in benefits accessibility may exist within organizations. Employees aware of eldercare benefits will access services, while those unaware of the company's benefits have a greater difficulty accessing needed services.

   Employees can't access a service if they aren't aware of it. Many of the non-user participants in the focus groups reported having no knowledge that eldercare services were offered by their employer.

   Implications: Poor communications about the availability of eldercare services is clearly linked to low utilization. Better benefits communication is critical if employers are to reach those employees who have the greatest need for eldercare services.

4. Challenges to benefits communications exist within organizations.

   The major theme of the focus groups was around limited information about eldercare and how that prevents employees from accessing those services. Employees reported confusion and misconception about what was covered under their employer-sponsored eldercare services. As a result, they don't use the services.

   Implications: Better communications is needed after an employee has begun to navigate the benefits matrix. Employers should work with their EAP and other eldercare providers to ensure ease of access.

5. Employees report significant disruption in their work due to their caregiving responsibilities.

   As expected, participants found themselves underperforming at work as a result of elder caregiving responsibilities-- a direct hit on productivity.

   Implications: Employees find caregiving disruptive during business hours, underscoring the need for employer-based eldercare services.

6. Employees' perceptions of corporate receptivity to their caregiving activities vary. "Users" perceive employers as more receptive to employees' accessing eldercare services than do "non-users."

   Most participants reported their organizations have a good understanding of caregiving needs. However, this perception varies depending on the employee's responsibilities. For example, employees who work in the field anticipate problems if they access eldercare services.

   Implications: Employers must educate and inform their field workers that services are available and must enable these workers to access them.

7. Attitudes of immediate managers are important determinants for utilization of services.

   The relationship between the employee and the immediate supervisor may have a significant impact on the utilization of eldercare services. Many employees reported concern with confiding to their bosses when they were in a caregiving situation. They were especially concerned that the manager -- especially in the case of an older employee and a younger manager that has had no experience as an elder caregiver -- may not understand or be sensitive to the eldercare experience.

   Implications: If managers are not sensitive to the plight of employee caregivers, no amount of communications about the program will help. Managers need to be educated and trained on the issue of employee caregiving -- and they must be encouraged to refer employees to eldercare programs.

1. Clutter -- The more ways we have to deliver information-- thanks to technology -- the more information we throw out there. In contrast, employees are reading less these days and, even if they are reading, they're confused by the number of messages they're receiving.
2. Clairvoyance-- It would be nice if we could read the minds of our employees and know what their needs are at any moment in time. But we can't. The best we can do is target our messages to the groups that are most likely to have the need and deliver these messages with the frequency and media mix necessary to increase our odds of reaching them at the right time.
3. Clarity-- Clarity and clutter go hand and hand. If we keep eldercare benefits descriptions short, simple and clear, we stand a better chance of being understood.
4. Cohesiveness-- Integrating eldercare communications into work/life communications, benefits communications and corporate communications works. Employees appreciate the big picture, especially when it's presented in a snapshot.
5. Consistency-- If the vendor of eldercare services is describing them one way and the company is describing them another, misinformation will prevail.
6. Competency-- When HR communicators are chosen for their technical benefits competency rather than their communications competency, the communications is destined to failure.