Care and compatibility

Compatibility of family and career - most people think of childcare, parental leave and parental allowance or the question of what flexible solutions companies can offer to support (young) families. But our society is getting older and older. This is why reconciliation has long since extended to the topic of care and caring for relatives.

The issue of reconciling care and work is becoming a major challenge for more and more employees, which even small and medium-sized companies have to adapt to. Caring for relatives differs greatly in some respects from looking after younger children: while a pregnancy lasts nine months and everyone involved has time to adjust to the new phase of life, a care case can occur suddenly and puts pressure on relatives to find a quick solution.

The degree of stress caused by caring for relatives can vary greatly and often increases with time. In addition, there is a big difference between helping a small child grow up and, for example, caring for a seriously ill father until he dies. This life situation is often not openly discussed by employees. Small and medium-sized companies sometimes have an advantage here: due to the often shorter communication channels and more direct structures, supervisors and HR managers may be more familiar with employees' life situations and can approach them.

1.2 million people in North Rhine-Westphalia were considered to be in need of care at the end of 2021, which is 6.6% of the state's total population. 86 percent of them were cared for at home. The number of people in need of care in 2021 was 23.5 percent higher than in 2019; at that time, 965,000 people, or 5.4 percent of NRW residents, were in need of care (source: IT.NRW).

These figures make it clear that the issue of reconciling care and work is central to a family-friendly and life-phase-oriented HR policy. Caring colleagues are in a difficult and stressful situation, which can lead to absenteeism and an increased sickness rate. In the interests of all those involved - whether employers, colleagues or those affected themselves - caring for relatives should be included in the portfolio of reconciliation measures.

The family-run company Bornemann-Etiketten from Wuppertal has long placed great emphasis on the compatibility of family and career. Caring for and looking after family members is a matter of course. An interview with HR manager Heidi Volkmann.