Working Daughters Deserve Support

(NAPSI)—For the approximate 23 million women who balance caring for an aging parent with going to work, and often raising children of their own, there is little recognition and not enough support. These women themselves often don’t think of what they do as caregiving; they just consider themselves dutiful daughters. Yet they average 24.4 hours of unpaid care a week, from buying groceries, to managing medication, helping with household chores, assisting their parents with bathing and dressing, and driving to appointments. Many are even providing complex medical tasks, with little or no training, such as administering injections, monitoring vital signs, caring for wounds or cleaning feeding tubes. Collectively, they provide $470 billion in unpaid care, according to the AARP.

Often, these women provide this care at great cost to their careers. Working daughters, much like working mothers, may need to switch to a less demanding job, take time off or quit work altogether. They lose wages and job-related benefits costing them, on average, $304,000 in lost wages and benefits while spending nearly 20 percent of their own income on caregiving.

To give these unsung heroes recognition and much needed support, November 17 marks the first National Working Daughters Day. It’s important to make the care they give compatible with a career. With 10,000 people turning 65 every day in the United States, the caregiving workforce is only going to grow. Smart businesses must examine policies and corporate cultures to create environments where caregivers can thrive. Working daughters need flexibility, paid family leave policies and expanding eligibility requirements. They need affordable, quality eldercare options. 

Learn more at www.workingdaughter.com.

On the Net:North American Precis Syndicate, Inc.(NAPSI)