Black and multiracial families are far more likely than white families to leave a job due to the difficulties of securing childcare. That’s just one reason why a recent article in the American Journal of Health Promotion about the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) noted that “caregiving programs are one of the few employer-sponsored benefits that both address social determinants of health and promote DEI.”
That perspective is more relevant than ever as, in the midst of (and in response to) a public health crisis, many employers are also more systematically trying to create and nurture more generationally, ethnically, and socioeconomically diverse environments. Indeed, of the 500 American HR leaders recently surveyed by Care.com, 60% are aligning their benefit strategies to support the key business objective of “supporting a diverse and inclusive workforce.”
Caregiving Benefits Support DEI Efforts
Strikingly, respondents in equal numbers believe that increasing child and senior care benefits will help them do it. Sizeable majorities report that care benefits help boost diversity and inclusion, with 91% citing child care benefits and 86% reporting senior care benefits as having a positive impact. So too does mental health support, with 85% seeing it as an aid.
But demand for these types of benefits is still exceeding the number of employers that supply them.
A recent survey of 509 employed family caregivers by the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregivers found that some of the benefits they report using most and found the most helpful are not offered by most employers. Among these, specialized caregiver services were among the most rarely offered and the most frequently used.
Employers are starting to get the message. Fifty-nine percent of respondents in our survey indicated that they are hearing requests for child care benefits—more than are actually offering them. That’s why 57% plan to prioritize childcare and 51% to prioritize senior care.
The perceived power of these benefits (along with mental health support) spans industries and worker classifications. Respondents trying to meet the needs of retail/front line, remote, and gig workers saw them as especially relevant, and planned to prioritize them more in 2022. But some of the employers for whom supporting DEI is a key objective—particularly in the healthcare, government/non-profit, and retail sectors—have much more room to better align their benefits with that goal.
Caregiving Benefits Can Help Boost Productivity
The central ingredients of good caregiving—commitment, reliability, compassion, and focus—can also be exhibited by employees on the job when they don’t have to spend as much time worrying about their loved one’s care. That’s why DEI gains not only accrue to those employers who offer caregiving benefits, but they generate another intriguing advantage: When these benefits are available, being caregivers also helps employees perform better in their jobs.
Offering caregiver benefits is a win/win proposition, supporting DEI initiatives for employers and both performance and peace of mind for employees. Read more about the specific details on what our research and that of other organizations reveal about the impact of caregiving benefits on diversity, equity, and inclusion.
To learn more about how employers perceive and plan to use benefit strategies to support numerous business objectives—not just supporting DEI, but boosting recruitment and retention and increasing productivity—download the full Future of Benefits report here.
