Caregiving vs Work Affects Home Businesses
July 31, 2007 by Mary Emma Allen
Many caregivers must balance job commitments with responsibility for their family member. What happens when these two areas…caregiving and work…conflict? What happens when the home business owner has employees who develop caregiving responsibilities…whether for a child, spouse or parent?
As caregiving becomes more of a major issue to those with jobs, employers and employees are facing a situation that wasn’t so critical years ago. How can a business keep going when employees aren’t there for long periods or need flexible schedules?
*Some employers are handling this by enabling employees to work from home…at least parttime, if their job is one that can be done off premises.
*Some caregivers are leaving their jobs and developing home businesses.
*State and federal lawmakers have begun to look toward legislation to find answers.
*Some employees are turning to litigation when an employer indicates they must be replaced by someone who can be on the job fulltime.
Two recent articles concerning this: Family-Leave Values in the New York Times Magazine. Work Life Balance Lawsuits Surging at the JDBliss blog.
There are legitimate concerns on both sides…the caregiver needs time to care for their family member and the employer needs employees who can fulfill his/her responsibilities for the business to stay in business.
More compromises are being worked out, but sometimes compromise is difficult because of the requirements of the job or the demands of caregiving. This is an issue that will require more thought and action in the coming months and years.
If you’re a home business owner with employees, have you run into any of these situations yet? Have you found a solution to a caregiving versus job commitment you can share with us?
Also, you may be someone who has begun to work at home, either at your own business or telecommuting for your employer. I’d enjoy hearing your story, too.
Thanks, Kristen, for including Home Biz Notes as one of your recommended blogs and this post as a favorite found during your recent reading session.
I was in this position until January of this year when my father passed away from complications of Alzheimers. (Of course, in a sense, I’m still the caregiver of my children — but it’s not the same thing.) I love the flexibility of being able stop working during the day and spend time with him when he was awake. If he went into the hospital, or needed extra attention, I didn’t have to deal with an employer — I just took on less work.
As I research and write for my blog, Alzheimer’s Notes, I’m finding more caregivers are trying to find “at home” solutions…either developing a business at home or discovering whether their company will let them work from home. It was nice you could be at home with him and have those memories…and know you did all you could. I juggled my work situation and spent time with Mother in her home, our home, and finally the nursing home.
Shaine, I visited your blog and was pleased to see that my post inspired you to write about this topic, too. It’s one that will become more and more critical in the coming years.
One of the biggest stressors is money. I’m speaking of the finances of the caregiver. If your financial future is arranged, that is a lot of stress off your back and off he back of the person you are taking care of because that person probably worries about you. Check out a great booklet on this subject. It can be ordered on their blog at attentioncaregivers.typepad.com
Thanks, Jan, for visiting Home Biz Notes and sharing your thoughts with us. Yes, finances put a great deal of stress on caregivers and caregiving situations.