Rethinking Caregiver Benefits in Asia

   

Employers that offer flexibility and an inclusive culture can help caregivers balance their responsibilities – both at work and in their personal lives.

 

Overview

As employers in Asia forge new ways of hybrid working, employees are facing an age-old issue: care obligations. Cultural traditions and an ageing population are helping to define a new path forward as the dust settles from the COVID-19 remote work shake up. Remote and hybrid work models have allowed employees who are caregivers to manage their responsibilities at work and at home in a way that was previously unimaginable.

“Asia has a rapidly ageing population and a culture of caring for older family members, so there is high demand for elder care,” says Rice Loh, head of total benefits advisory and management, health solutions in Asia for Aon. “The so-called ‘sandwich generation’ is prominent in Asia and the retirement age has increased in many geographies^1,2. This means benefits need to help employees cope with family caregiving obligations while also ensuring employees lead healthy lives as they age themselves.” The ageing population is a defining cultural force that is shaping what employees want and what employers can deliver in terms of flexible benefits that are customised to employees’ unique needs.

So, how can organisations extend their resources to prioritise support for caregiving in all its forms — self-care, childcare, eldercare and beyond? By rethinking their approach to benefits, companies can make the most of their investments and support their diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) goals while ensuring that caregiving employees feel seen and supported.

In Depth

When it comes to creating inclusive, well-rounded benefits programs, employers have to simultaneously consider how workforce preferences are changing, rising healthcare costs related to inflation, and their bottom line. What’s more, employees who have carer responsibilities have additional needs that employers can address through their workplace policies and benefits.

Importantly, no two caregivers are the same. Caregivers come from different generations and cultures and have different incomes, and they are taking care of all kinds of people, too. So, employers need to have a broad mindset in their caregiver policies to consider new and different kinds of families.

In Singapore, elder care is becoming an acute issue, with employees spending 43% of their income on care-giving related expenses³ and reporting associated mental health challenges arising from the financial and time pressures involved. According to Loh, organisations need to think beyond flexibility for caregivers. “Organisations tend to look at it as an issue of taking care of the elderly, but they forget the employee is part of this ecosystem and will face ageing themselves. How can they help prepare them for when it’s their turn?”

 
 

Rethinking Caregiver Benefits

Just as the office looks different compared to a decade ago, benefits programs are also undergoing a rapid evolution. Flexible benefits are an innovation that supports diverse employee needs while better managing rising costs. Essentially, flexible benefits mean that instead of a static, one-size-fits-all program, employee benefits are offered as an allowance. This means, as part of a total rewards package, the employer assigns a value for ‘flexible benefits’, which allows the employee to choose from a range of options that best suit their family or stage in life.

Rather than an organisation paying for benefits that are not used, this framework allows employees to match benefits to their needs. Meanwhile, the organisation optimises return on value and bolsters their employee value proposition (EVP).

 

This kind of change can take time to implement, but it’s important to think in the medium to long term, particularly as the population ages. In 2019, 12.6 per cent of China’s population was aged 65 or above and that group will hit 300 million by 2025, official data shows. “Caregiving is not only a logistical challenge. It is also a physical, social, emotional and financial challenge,” says Loh. “It’s important for employers to be as comprehensive as possible when they are trying to design a support plan.”

It’s important to understand the challenges caregiving employees face in their day-to-day life if an organisation is to offer a well-rounded program. For example, in many Asian markets, we see insurance products that are targeted at elderly parents. “Helping employees find ways to fund or get protection for their elderly could be very helpful,” says Loh.

Flexible schedules and more time off in general can help employees work when they can be the most productive while still allowing them to, for example, take an elderly parent to a doctor’s appointment. During the school year, managers must think about scheduling early morning calls that would interfere with daycare or school drop offs. Furthermore, offering equal time off to parents following the birth of a child can help offset gender imbalances in caregiving.

Telemedicine and virtual technology have also made therapy and healthcare more accessible, giving employees the benefit of access to a network of experts, such as nurses or social workers. Employee assistance programs (EAPs) may also offer support in a virtual setting. EAPs can help caregivers navigate healthcare more easily by identifying resources employees can use to provide the correct care or support for a family member. They can also help cut the complexity out of healthcare and nuanced caregiving needs by putting employees in touch with vendors who can offer short-term counseling, assessments or referrals to specialised care providers.

 

Making the Most out of Investments

As employers become more cost-conscious, it’s important that they avoid sacrificing programs and resources that would otherwise help them retain strong talent.

Making employees aware of their benefits is one of the most important ways employers can get the most out of their investment. Benefits training for human resources professionals and managers will help broaden awareness of different types of offerings and point employees in the right direction faster.

“Ultimately, we want to increase productivity, and we know that increasing employee satisfaction increases productivity,” says Loh. “To look at the ROI, you need to look at the short, medium and long term. Certainly, when employees have less stress, stay healthy and active and take better care of themselves as they age, these things help to contain costs for employers.”

Recognising the Role of the Caregiver

By acknowledging the responsibilities employees juggle inside and outside the office and building a support system to help them navigate whatever life brings, employers are encouraging a stronger culture and reducing the stigma that caregiving can hold.

Caregivers don’t always disclose their responsibilities because they are afraid of the consequences or the negative impact it could have on their careers. So, building a culture of support, empathy, collaboration and belonging will help to promote openness among employees to allow them to talk about their problems. This is the first step needed for companies to give effective support.

 
 

Source

¹China to Raise Retirement Age for First Time Since 1950s (bbc.com)
²South China Morning Post, China to Tap Elderly Population, November 2020
³Make Care Count in the National Budget – AWAREs submission to the 2020 National Budget.pdf [Singapore]