Are employers starting to take notice of a need for senior care leave?Employers have long understood the need for new mothers or fathers to take some time away from work to concentrate on the many requirements of a newborn, but what’s been acknowledged far less is the equally important need for adult children to take time away to look after their aging parents. Yet as our life expectancy continues to expand, and as baby boomers are entering into their senior years, the balancing act to take care of career and family is now more prevalent.
And attempting to balance a career alongside senior care requirements can be very complicated. In reality, providing care alone, without adding in work-related stress, places caregivers at a greater possibility of depression, drug abuse, and multiple physical issues: heart problems, infections, and cancer, just to name a few.
And even though the Family and Medical Leave Act ensures that employees of larger companies gain access to twelve weeks of unpaid leave, only 13% of employees receive paid family leave – an important thing for many individuals to make sure monetary needs are met. And a full one in every seven employees who look after an older parent end up reducing their time in the office, taking a lesser-paying job, or leaving the workforce altogether.
One potential solution to keep a close watch on is the Family and Medical Leave Insurance Act, or FAMILY Act, introduced last year to give limited income to family caregivers for up to twelve weeks for providing care for a loved one facing a health issue. At this point, five states have passed similar policies (New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and California – plus Washington, DC).
Even though paid leave for caregivers is expensive for businesses, Maureen Corcoran of Prudential Financial notes, “It is not more costly than losing employees early to disability, to early retirement, to presenteeism (when employees show up for work but don’t get much done).”
Thankfully, there is one more remedy already available to all family caregivers: partnering with one of the best home health agencies in Los Angeles, like JFS Care. We provide loved ones with the peace of mind needed to focus in the office, confident their senior loved one is getting the best possible quality of care, personalized to every individual’s unique needs.
Call us at 213-383-2273 to learn more about our professional home care in Los Angeles, CA and the surrounding areas. We’re proud to be one of the best home health agencies in Los Angeles, and are happy to provide you with educational resources specific to the particular challenges your senior loved one is dealing with, and schedule a free in-home assessment to share how we are able to enable you to regain a healthy life balance.