The number of caregivers in the workplace has increased significantly since the onset of the pandemic. Employees have increased responsibilities for children, elderly parents, and other loved ones. Many employers provide benefits and follow business practices recommended to support employee caregivers, but creating a culture responsive to employees' needs and well-being is as challenging as it is critical. This week, AIM EVP of Government Affairs, Brooke Thomson, joins Pete Wright to discuss employees balancing care-giving duties, and how employers are helping their employees navigate the challenge of care-giving.

Selected Recommendations from the AIM Pink Slip Initiative

• commit to providing pay increases and advancement steps to women/caregivers on schedule rather than penalizing those who have been on leave or working limited hours;
• Extend the time workers can be on leave to coincide with the duration of the pandemic;
• Give hiring preference to former workers, if their experience and skills allow, who were required to leave the workplace due to family demands;
• Extend the time that returning workers can bridge tenure for benefits and other considerations to coincide with the full duration of the pandemic;
• Listen to individual employees about their specific needs and expectations and not make assumptions about what each woman or caregiver can or cannot do;
• Institute practices that reduce conflict with remote schooling such as not holding meetings before 9 am or at lunch, when children need assistance

Other benefits that were shared during the roundtable in early November:

• Conducting employee surveys to check in
• Authentic communication from leadership on their own personal challenges
• Encouraging empathy in the workplace and providing benefits for overall well-being
• Free access to apps such as Ginger and Calm
• Employers highlighted high adoption rates for these apps
• Hosting meditation and other wellness programming
• Flexible schedules for employees, even when it impacts business operations
• Reviewing promotion data to ensure equity across workforce
• Monitoring impact of remote work on workers with caregiving responsibilities
• Access to other programming around financial planning, retirement, and other topics
• Most importantly, employers underscored the need to create a supportive culture that recognizes an employees’ overall well-being

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