Carers' passport to document need for flexibility and support. Over 5 million employees have caring responsibilities.

 

Unite, Britain's leading trade union, is calling on employers to adopt improved workplace practices and recognise the needs of workers who have caring responsibilities.

 

At the start of UK Carer's Week, Unite is calling for organisations to adopt "Carers' Passports" that document the flexibility and support needed by employees with caring responsibilities It can then be carried into an employee’s future roles or if their line management changes.

 

A carer is an employee who, outside of the workplace, provides unpaid care for a person who has a disability, illness or who needs support in their life. Around 1 in 5 of all employees (or approx. 5 million people) juggles work with care.

 

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said:

 

"Although most of us care for someone at some point in our lives, it is also something that we are not prepared for and can come as a shock. It can be difficult to talk about some of these issues which may not have been raised in the workplace before.

 

"Unite is calling for employers to adopt the Carers' Passport and support their staff in being able to be a carer as well as a valued and productive employee."

 

The purpose of the Carer Passport is to enable a carer and their manager to hold a supportive conversation and document flexibilities needed to support the carer in balancing care and work.  It is designed to be a living document, to be reviewed regularly and will identify and record any changes in the nature or impact of an employee’s caring responsibilities.  

 

Unite national officer for women Alison Spencer-Scragg added:

 

"We know that employees that have these responsibilities often feel overwhelmed by needing to balance working with caring. Employers need to show flexibility and understanding when dealing with this and the Carers' Passport is a good way to do this.

 

"The aim is to minimise the need to re-negotiate these flexibilities every time an employee moves post, moves between roles or departments, or is assigned a new manager."

 

-ENDS-

 

Notes to editors

 

Unite has spoken to hundreds of our members about their caring responsibilities. Some of their responses are below that demonstrate the difficulties they face.

 

Member – Ireland

 

My mum suffered a life-threatening stroke and needed rehabilitation close to her home. However I didn’t live nearby and didn’t  drive but worked full-time.  Every day to visit and check up on mum, I was not getting home until 10 or 11pm at night. Most days having to get back up for work the next day at 6 or 7am like most. I wish I had informed my manager as I ended up putting my career on hold as it was too much.

 

Member – Northern Ireland

 

I think some people don’t consider themselves as carers, myself included so maybe feel this isn’t relevant. I feel because I am related to the person it feels strange/wrong to say I am a carer rather than a daughter

 

Member – North West

 

Not knowing when I might get a call to go and help my dad was made so much worse by having a manager that didn’t understand, and an employer without carers policies in place. These are usually unplanned absences and having someone supportive who takes their duty of care seriously towards you can make all the difference

 

Member - Wales  

 

My work experienced first hand how challenging my father’s dementia was as he would call the Resource desk for me if I didn't answer my mobile quickly enough. I was so grateful when my manager asked to do a welfare check in to understand how the business could best support me.

 

We agreed to 3 early finishes a week so he had less time alone and I was able to work longer hours on 2 days where I had carers go in for the afternoon. When he was hospitalised, I was given paid compassionate leave with no expectation to make the time back. I felt heard, understood and I could breathe again. This went on for 2 years and I am incredibly grateful they were supporting that whole time until he sadly had to go into full time residential care before passing.

 

Member NEYH

 

 

When I married my husband 30 years ago, I never imagined that I would be an unpaid carer, even though he has a lifelong disability. We were both fit and healthy, in full time well-paying jobs, with an active social life. The transition from being a wife to an unpaid carer was slow, my husband’s impairment, health and mobility deteriorated as he got older. He was also experiencing intense pain, which affected his concentration and his mood. It is fair to say that our relationship changed as began to take on more and more of our previously shared everyday tasks and responsibilities. 

 

Loneliness, isolation, a lack of support and money worries are some of the issues I faced, but by far the biggest challenge for me was a lack of understanding from my employer, especially when I had to take unplanned days off work. Caring responsibilities can be unpredictable and demanding and balancing inflexible work practices alongside caring responsibilities was extremely difficult. 

 

My employer could have supported me in several ways such as having a clear and flexible carer policy, providing carers leave when I needed, I could give notice for things such as medical appointments but often needed leave at short, or no notice and this was often denied, adding to my concern and raising mine and my husband’s stress levels. When employers support employees with caring responsibilities to balance their working and caring commitment it not only benefits the workers it also encourages retention of valued employees, and improves workplace performance and morale.