Sandwich Generation Employee Benefits To Support Elder and Child Care
With so much focus lately on Millenials, what can employers do to support another group of employees, the Sandwich Generation?
Employees in the Sandwich Generation, who are caring not only for their children but also for their own aging parents, often struggle to balance all of this responsibility. According to the Northeast Business Group on Healthcare, these caregivers miss an average of six days of work each year due to caregiving responsibilities, are less productive because of personal distractions, and are in poorer health than non-caregiving colleagues.
By providing sandwich generation employee benefits, employers can give employees the support they need to succeed in and out of the office.
Sandwich Generation Employee Benefits:
Flexible work schedule: This enables employees with personal obligations during the typical 9-to-5 workday to accomplish everything they need without having to take off to catch up.
Child care benefits: Employers can alleviate the financial burden of child care by subsidizing care options, including backup care.
Senior care benefits: In addition to helping employees find senior care options employers can also provide tips and guidance to give caregivers confidence to navigate their new roles.
Financial planning assistance: As if managing personal finances wasn’t already hard enough, this generation may also
be making mortgage payments, helping pay college tuition, and managing their parents’ estate. Access to financial planning allows employees to work caregiving-related costs into their financial plans and better prepare for the future.
Household help: Employers can ease the burden of simple household tasks by providing meal preparation, house cleaning, and laundry services.
Access to elder care experts: Senior care needs often arise suddenly, so providing information (through webinars, on-site seminars or even just contact information for local experts) can be extremely helpful to employees.
It’s in employers’ best interest to provide the tools employees need to manage their personal lives so they can do well and excel at work. Employers who offer these types of benefits show that they care about their sandwich generation employees.
Editorial Note: The content of this blog originally appeared in the July/August, 2018 edition of ABR Employment Services magazine, HR Insights. It has been edited for SEO by Kinsa Group and originally written by Robin Throckmorton of Strategic Human Resources Inc.