Workforce
- Summary
- Effects of Healthcare & LTC
- Family Leave
- Labor Force Participation
- Labor Shortages
- Mismatches in Skills Needed
- Older Worker Policies - Employer
- Older Worker Policies - Government
- Productivity of Aging Workforce
- Technology
- Training & Education
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Workforce » Family Leave
Why It's Important
Most caregivers are employed in some capacity. Caregiving affects both the employee and the employer. Employee’s that provide caregiving do so at the risk losing income, benefits, pensions and social security throughout their career. Employers find that caregiving directly affects worker productivity, employee turnover, absenteeism and early retirement. Some companies offer programs to support caregivers, but the majority of them do not have such programs or policies. As the “sandwich” generation copes with caring for aging parents and caring for their own children, increasing flexibility from their employers will be paramount in allowing them to be able to do their jobs both as employees and as caregivers. Offering family leave in addition to that provided by the FMLA is a step in the right direction.
How Richmond Is Doing
Two in five area employers report offering some type of family leave time in addition to FMLA. (ODP BUSINESS LEADER, 2008)

(ODP BUSINESS LEADER, 2008)
How Virginia Is Doing
- Twenty-two percent of Boomers in Virginia are currently caregivers for a parent, stepparent or older relative (compared to 17% of the overall population) (ODP RESIDENT, 2008)
- Forty-one percent of employers offer Family Leave time beyond FMLA (ODP BUSINESS LEADER, 2008)
- More than half of Boomers in Virginia are either current caregivers or have been within the past five years (ODP RESIDENT, 2008)

(ODP BUSINESS LEADER, 2008)
How the U.S. Is Doing
According to the MetLife Caregiving Cost Study: Productivity Losses to U.S. Business:
- The total estimated annual cost of lost productivity to U.S. businesses from full-time employees who are caregiver’s ranges from $17.1 billion for those with intense caregiving responsibilities to a total of $33.6 billion for all caregivers
- The average cost per employee for those with intense caregiving responsibilities is $2,441
- The average cost per employee for all full-time, employed caregivers is $2,110
(METLIFE, CAREGIVING COST STUDY, 2006)
Data & Information Sources
Family Caregiver Alliance
http://www.caregiver.org/caregiver/jsp/home.jsp
Federal Interagency Forum on Aging Related Statistics
http://www.agingstats.gov/agingstatsdotnet/main_site/default.aspx
MetLife Caregiving Cost Study: Productivity Losses to U.S. Business, 2006
National Alliance for Caregiving
ODP, Residents’ Study & Business Leaders’ Study
http://www.olderdominion.org/documents/ODP_Exec_Sum_03_26-08.pdf
U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey
http://www.census.gov/acs/www/
Virginia Workforce Connection
http://www.vawc.virginia.gov/analyzer/default.asp
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