More and More Dutch People Are Combining Their Work With Informal Care. However, in Professions Such as Healthcare, Transport, and Retail, Flexibility is of Lacking, Putting Informal CareGivers Under Increasing Pressure. Especialless Those with Practical Training Are Getting Into Trouble.
Due to the Aging Population and Increasing Staff Shortages in Healthcare, The Pressure on Informal Caregivers Will Increase Significantly in the Coming Years. In 2021, Approximately 1.8 Million Dutch People Combined Work with Informal Care. Accordance to New Research by ABN AMRO, This Will Increase to around 2.1 Million People in 2040.
“IT APPARSARS THAT MORE FLEXIGITITY AT WERKS HELPS INFORMAL CAREGVIVERS TO BETTER COMBINE CARE FOR A PARENT OR GRANDPARENT,” SAYS KLARA RAIBER, A Researcher at Radboud University. “That you can say to your work: My Mother Has A Doctor’s Appointment Now, I have to leave for a moment.”
Combining Work and Informal Care is particularly challenging in practical professionals. “Practically trained people get Doubly Stuck,” Says Nehreen al-Mahmudi, Sector Analyst Healthcare and Themes at ABN AMRO. “They often have feer opportunities to adapt their work and less financial space. That makes extra vulnerable in the coming years.”
Working in Transport or Construction Usually Requires Physical Presence. For Example, a bus driver Cannot Simply Leave Earlier for A Care Appointment, While An Accountant Can More Easily Make Up For Missed Hours at Another Time. And a plumbber, for example, can hardly work from home. This is Easier with Other Professions.
‘Impact of Informal Care is great’
In Addition, People with a Practical Education of the Have a Lower Income, which meeans that enlisting help at home or taking unpaid leave is not an option. Moreover, they are more likely to deal with temporary contracts and job insecurity. That makes the combination with informal care even more diffress.
Accordance to raiber, employers need to take more account or staff who combine work and care. “The Support of Colleagues is very Important, But Especally the Attitude of Managers Plays a Major Role for Informal Caregivers.”
Accordance to ABN AMRO, More Thought should Therefore Be Given to How Informal CareGivers can be supported by employers. People are more at risk of overload and stress if they also have a care task in addition to their work.
This leads to more absenteeism. In some cases, the informal caregiver just has to stop working. “Informal care is of seen as a private matter, but the social and economic impact is great,” Says al-Mahmudi.
Creative Solutions
Obvious Solutions Such as Flexible Working Hours Are Often Not Possible. Yet we should not be write off that option immediately, al-Mahmudi believes. “Sometimes More is Possible. As a Hairdresser or Plumber, you can always see if you can’t start a little earlier, or work later.” That is of not annoying for the customer at all.
Otherwise, Employers and Employees Should Look for Creative Solutions, Accordance to ABN AMRO. Technological Tools Such as alarm buttons, Bed Sensors and Smart Medication Dispensers Can Make It Easier for Informal Caregivers in Practical Professions To Keep An Eye on Someone and Support Them, Even if they are not present Themselves.
Money is needed for thesis solutions. Accordance to al-Mahmudi, Employers can play an important role in this by thinking about finance: for Example, through the Municipality or the Employer Themselves. “It is very nice ifone at your work thinks about which muticipal pots you can claim, for example.”
In Addition, Paid Care Leave would help Practical Trained Employees, So That They Can Better Combine Work and Informal Care Withing Income. “Now informal caregivers of Take vacation to be able to care for some. But if care leave is also Possible, you can simply use days for vacation,” Says al-Mahmudi. “If you are rested, you will also appear better at your work.”