Tips For Balancing Work With Home Care:

February 23, 2012

Find out if the employer must follow the federal Family and Medical Leave Act. If so, an employee is entitled to up to 12 weeks of unpaid time off annually to care for a parent with a serious health condition.

Long-distance caregivers shoulder an even greater burden of caring for an aging parent while meeting job demands. Employees should find out if they can work remotely for greater flexibility. For instance, an employee may be able to work from the home of the relative for whom they are caring.

Employee Assistance Programs, such as WorkPlace Options, are an example of a growing trend in employer-subsidized caregiving programs that employers and employees around the country are embracing. This program enables employees to continue working when they experience a temporary breakdown in their elder care arrangements. WorkPlace Options offers a comprehensive, fully integrated Backup Care Program that features a network of thousands of individually contracted home care agencies, including Right at Home, to provide Backup Caregivers in case of an emergency.

Hiring a national home care and assistance agency, such as Right at Home, is another solution for many families. Right at Home provides in-home non-medical care, often at a fraction of the cost of moving into an assisted living facility or nursing home. Services offered included companionship, meal preparation, light housekeeping, grocery and errand services, incidental transportation, personal care assistance, and more. Best of all, Right at Home is available 24/7, catering to an employee’s varied work schedules. All Right at Home caregivers are fully screened through professional references, rigorous criminal background checks and are fully insured and bonded.

For more information on support for the family caregiver, and options for receiving home care services, check out the following resources: