Juggling work and care

We know that in normal times, never mind during a global pandemic, it can be a real struggle for colleagues who are combining work with caring for a loved one who is older, disabled or seriously ill.

Caring is an issue which faces all of us. Changing demographics and an ageing population mean that three in five people will end up caring for someone at some point in their lives. The number of carers in the UK is set to grow from six million to nine million in the next 30 years. This is an issue none of us can afford to ignore.

Royal Mail supports working carers and is an active member of Carers UK’s business forum, Employers for Carers (EfC) – an employer membership service committed to working carers, whose key purpose is to ensure that employers have the support to retain and manage employees with caring responsibilities.

Jane Simpson, executive sponsor of the Parents & Carers network, said: ‘I am really pleased to announce that we have renewed our membership with Carers UK.

‘This means that all colleagues can sign up to and get access to EfC Digital – a members’ platform, which provides a range of online practical resources, tools and e-Learning for those who care for others.

‘The great resources and support that EfC offer are made even more relevant as we deal with a further lockdown.’

Colleagues can create an account by visiting www.efcdigital.org, selecting ‘create new account,’ and entering our membership code: #EFC1461.

Supporting colleagues who provide care for others

Many of our people balance parental and caring responsibilities with their career. Our Parents & Carers steering group advocates for carers and offers support to those who need it.

The group aims to help colleagues with caring responsibilities balance these duties with their day-to-day working life. They can help direct you to where you can obtain support with formal flexible working requests and approvals as well as advice on the types of flexible working available.