Toolkit helps employers support employees who are caregivers

The How to Care for Caregivers toolkit describes what family caregiving is, who does it, why employer support is important and how employers can best provide that support. It also offers tips and a self-assessment tool to help organizations become more caregiver friendly.

The toolkit was created in response to the 2022 report, National Strategy to Support Family Caregivers, which outlined a roadmap for supporting family caregivers in America. Ensuring financial and workplace security for caregivers is part of the five-goal framework outlined in this first-ever comprehensive plan on caregiving. Other goals include increasing awareness and outreach to caregivers, strengthening services and supports, advancing engagement and partnerships, as well as advancing research, data and evidence-based practices to improve caregiving.

The need for supportive work environments for caregivers was also highlighted in AARP's recent report Valuing the Invaluable. AARP estimated the value of unpaid care at $600 billion in 2021, with informal family caregivers providing approximately 36 billion hours of assistance to loved ones. Numbers like these show just how important it is for regional employers to acknowledge and support working caregivers.

On April 18, the Biden-Harris administration released an executive order, aimed at increasing access to high quality, affordable care across the age spectrum in America. The order highlighted the need to fully invest in the caregiving industry as a matter of public health.