Employers should give more support to caregivers in their workforce, members of the Hamilton Rotary Club were told yesterday.

Crystal Clay, human resources manager at the Bank of Bermuda, spoke out about the need for businesses to be aware of the strains placed upon caregivers when she addressed the group as part of Age Concern's `Bermuda Cares Week'.

She said there were four kinds of caregivers; for the disabled, sick, young children and seniors.

And Mrs. Clay said as huge numbers of people become caregivers at some point in their lives, it was necessary for human resources staff to consider creating elder care policies.

"You may ask why is the plight of caregivers an issue for the workplace," said Mrs. Clay.

"A 1997 MetLife study of more than 1,500 employees found that American businesses lost between $11 and $29 billion a year in productivity costs due to caregiving-related work interruptions.

"But despite the negative effect of caregiving responsibilities in the workplace, only a small number of employers currently offer assistance to employees."

The human resources manager said:

Nearly two thirds of caregivers were working full or part-time.

A large and fast-growing segment of workers were faced with caregiving responsibilities that could be more challenging than finding childcare.

The average working couple had more living parents than children.

Almost one in every four households were involved with family caregiving to elder relatives or friends.

The typical family caregiver was a 46-year-old woman who was employed and spent around 18 hours a week caring for her mother nearby.

And 50 percent of working caregivers reported taking time off, going to work late or working fewer hours.

Mrs. Clay said employers interested in assisting their employees should conduct a needs assessment, survey employees on their current and expected future needs, determine if there was an ingrained organisational resistance to accommodating caregivers, offer caregiving resources and referrals, and establish support groups, flexible scheduling and leave policies for family-related matters.

"I encourage you to carefully consider how your workplace can get involved in supporting caregivers, not only in your organisation, but in the community," she said.