Working caregivers—particularly women—left the workforce in record numbers during the pandemic. Now they're returning to work, and companies must deliver the support employees need to make the workplace inclusive and sustainable—or risk losing top talent again.
Caregivers aren’t just parents of young children. They’re people caring for an ailing spouse, aging relatives, and grown children with disabilities. And let’s face it, women are disproportionately tasked with caregiving responsibilities, which makes them more vulnerable to interruptions in their career and less able to advance at equal rates. Companies need to step up and make caregiver support a top priority—not only because it’s the right thing to do, but because it delivers an advantage in the competition for talent.
The challenge of balancing work and caregiving is a perennial problem that became supercharged during COVID-19—and won't go away when the pandemic ends. In July 2021, when care options were reopening and vaccines were becoming readily available to younger children, our research found that nearly half of all caregivers were still worried about their future at work, as well as their overall well-being. So what can employers do to support caregivers? We have identified five ways to ease the burden on working caregivers.
Investing will break through trends that reinforce existing gender gaps and support more gender-inclusive economies and societies.
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Costly or cost-effective? Recent BCG research finds that childcare benefits deliver returns of up to 425% of their cost for companies across the US.
BCG's Impact in 60 series features our experts sharing in 60 seconds how they’re working with clients and partners to tackle global challenges and make a positive impact. Here, BCG's Neeru Ravi explains how the US stands to lose $290 billion in GDP per year if it doesn’t address the broken care economy.
Our experts can help you implement a variety of innovative options to ease the burden on working caregivers, support employees returning to work after caregiving, and mitigate the risk of losing critical talent.
We are proud to offer best-in-class benefits to support BCG’s working caregivers and are dedicated to listening, learning, and expanding our benefits and support.
