Care doesn’t follow a schedule, employment needs to recognise this reality
As we build our 2026 European Carers Day campaign around “Care Doesn’t Follow a Schedule. Flexibility Matters,” we are highlighting evidence and experiences that help illustrate why flexibility at work matters for informal carers.
This commentary by Kirsty Liddiard, Katherine Runswick-Cole and Dan Goodley, from the Center of Care in the UK, provides a particularly relevant perspective. Focusing on parents of seriously ill and disabled children in the UK, the authors examine proposals to strengthen employment support and highlight a fundamental challenge: caring responsibilities are often unpredictable, fluctuating and difficult to fit around rigid employment arrangements.
Their analysis shows how a lack of flexibility can have very real consequences for families — from reducing working hours to leaving employment altogether. It also makes the case for flexible working, adequate financial support and employment rights that recognise the realities of caring.
Although the article focuses on the UK and on parents caring for seriously ill children, the underlying message resonates with the wider experience of informal carers across Europe: care does not always happen according to a timetable, and employment systems need to be able to adapt.
We are sharing the commentary as a useful contribution to the wider debate on how we can make work and care compatible — without forcing people to choose between earning a living and caring for someone they love.
