The primary objective of CoWorkCare is to generate knowledge on how employees' care obligations for their old parents affect their labour market participation, and to disseminate this knowledge to informed policymaking promoting extended working lives for employees.
The background for the project is that demographic changes lead to an increased need for adult children to provide care for old parents in order to reduce the demand for care services, while as many people as possible are employed until reaching retirement age.
Work packages
The project is organized into 5 work packages.
Work package 1
By analyzing register data, WP 1 investigates the effects of having a parent in need of care affects children's labour market participation. Analyses show that income declines in proximity of a single parent's death, where the need for informal care can be particularly high.
There is a slight decrease in employment immediately before and after the parents’ death. The likelihood of becoming a long-term recipient of social security benefits increases slightly, and more so for daughters.
Furthermore, analyses indicate that employment and income decrease, and that children's medically certified sick leave increases, when parents experience health shocks, such as strokes and hip fractures. The effects are small but somewhat larger for daughters.
Work package 2
WP 2 investigate employees' experiences of combining work and caregiving for old parents using a survey conducted in 2022. In total, 6049 respondents participated in the survey.
Help with using new digital technology, was the most common type of help provided to old parents. In addition, sons and daughters provided various types of practical assistance. Very few provide personal care. The parents' health, whether they lived alone or were residing in an institution, were the most significant factors determining whether and to what extent children provided help and personal care.
The survey shows little to no correlation between the children's gender, socio-economic background, the type of workplace where the children were employed, and caregiving for parents. Providing care did not lead to reduced working hours or exiting the labor market. However, caregiving resulted in absence from work. Both paid and unpaid leave, as well as the sick leave days, were utilized to assist parents.
Work package 3
WP 3 examined the room for maneuver employees have to balance their roles as workers and caregivers. A case study in four companies across different sectors of the Norwegian labor market was conducted in 2022 and 2023. Through interviews with employees, union representatives, and managers, we explored what it means to care for parents while working and how this is managed in the workplace.
The general picture is that managers and employers have little oversight of the extent to which employees have such caregiving responsibilities. Many employees feel that it is largely their individual responsibility to manage their situation, and many call for formal and rights-based arrangements. Workplaces have different working hour arrangements, and employees' ability to control their own workday varies across workplaces.
Working hour arrangements and the possibility of remote work greatly influence employees' flexibility. Flexibility in time and place for when work is performed makes it easier to juggle multiple roles and enables being both a good employee and a good son or daughter. Employees in more flexible positions perform more caregiving tasks during regular working hours. However, the boundaries between work and family become blurred. Caregiving tasks intrude on work hours, while work tasks encroach on personal time.
The requirement for physical presence at the workplace makes it harder to follow up with parents, especially in managing health and care services during the day. Regardless of their workplace or position, employees make significant sacrifices. Their jobs are highly prioritized, often at the expense of their personal free time.
Wok package 4
In WP 4, case studies were conducted in the hospital sector in Sweden and Denmark in 2023. The findings from Denmark and Sweden differ very little from the Norwegian findings. The characteristics of the hospital sector, rather than differences between the countries, shape workers' experiences in balancing work and caregiving.
Work package 5
In WP 5, we have categorized and discussed measures that can promote workforce participation among employees who care for parents.
Informants in the case study and survey indicate that greater acceptance of the caregiving situation and better accommodations in the workplace, as well as an expanded and more diverse provision of public services to their parents, would make it easier to balance work and care.
They also expressed a desire for the introduction of a right to paid leave days for providing care to the parents. If such a leave system is implemented, it must be clarified whether the employer or the state will cover the costs.
Participants
Partner institutions
Publications
Lizardi, E.R.; Fevang, E.; Røed, K. & Øien, H. (2024). Effects of Health Shocks on Adult Children’s Labor Market Outcomes and Well-Being. IZA DP No. 17232. Discussion Paper Series. IZA Institute of Labour Economics (docs.iza.org) (pdf)
Gautun, H. & Bratt, C. (2024). Caring for older parents in Norway – How does it affect labor market participation and absence from work?. Social Science & Medicine (sciencedirect.com)
Gautun, H. (2023). Caring for Old Parents in the Digital Society. Chronicle published in the magazine «Pensjonisten», September issue. Publisher: The Norwegian Pensioners’ Association
Gautun, H. & Bratt, C. (2023). Help and Care to Older Parents in the Digital Society. Nordic Journal of Working Life Studies (tidsskrift.dk)
