Supporting end of life carers in paid employment
On behalf of the Center for Care, Professor Clare Gardiner reflects on the needs of unpaid carers providing end of life care who are in employment, what support is available to them in the UK, what we can learn from international examples and opportunities for change available to us as part of the Department for Business and Trade Consultation into employment support for unpaid carers.
Up to 750,000 people in the UK are providing unpaid care to someone approaching the end of life . Whilst end of life unpaid care can be hugely rewarding, it also comes with profound challenges and caring for someone in the last months or weeks of life can be physically and emotionally exhausting. Evidence shows us that end of life caring can lead to a wide range of negative impacts including worse physical health, psychological and emotional problems, social and financial challenges and spiritual distress.
One of the most important, but often unrecognised, impacts of end of life caring is on a carer’s employment. Increasing numbers of employees find themselves taking on a caring role whilst in paid employment and we expect these numbers to rise over coming years due to ageing populations internationally, and planned increases in statutory retirement/pension ages.
