Katz, Ruth

The study examined employers' knowledge of and attitudes toward working carers who care for aging family members. The study was based on the ecological model. One hundred employers were interviewed using structured questionnaires and 13 employers by additional in-depth interviews. Both research instruments included areas of disruption to the organization, existing policies, and feasibility as to developing appropriate policies to support working carers.

Adult's decision to care for aging family members has an aggregate effect on public income support programs as well on as health care services and costs. Families have continuously been the primary source of support and care of elderly members. It is estimated that adult children constitute 41.3% of all informal caregivers (Wolff & Kasper, 2006). However, recent demographic trends have changed the landscape of parental caregiving by placing unprecedented levels of competing demands for care, potentially limiting the availability of adult children to provide parental care.