Reforming the situation in which people have no alternative but to quit their job to provide nursing care for family members -- this is a goal that should be realized as early as possible, to secure the workforce in a super-aging society as well.
The annual number of people who leave their job to provide nursing care was 99,000, according to an employment status survey conducted in 2017 by the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry. The figure was at almost the same level as the 101,000 recorded in the previous survey in 2012.
As part of its growth strategy, the government has established the goal of reducing to zero the number of people who quit jobs for nursing care, but the situation remains serious.
Many of those who resign to provide nursing care are in their 40s and 50s, members of the most productive generation. Women account for 76 percent of the total, but the proportion of men has been increasing. Behind this could be the decrease in the number of brothers and sisters and the higher percentage of unmarried people, in addition to the number of double-income households. This is an era in which people of both genders inevitably face the issue of nursing care of their parents.
Reemployment is not easy for people in their 40s and 50s. Of the people who quit jobs so as to provide nursing care, only 25 percent were able to find jobs again. Leaving jobs for nursing care greatly spoils the lifestyle plans of such people and their family members. In not a few cases, they become distressed economically, and mentally and physically exhausted.
The retirement of people who play a core role in their workplace is also a blow to their employers.
It is imperative to accelerate arrangements for preparing an environment in which a balance can be struck between nursing care and work.
With the aging population, an increasing number of people are engaged in caring for parents or other family members while also working. According to the 2017 survey, there were more than 3.46 million such people, up 550,000 over the previous survey five years earlier. The 2017 figure represented more than half of the people engaged in nursing care.
Firm's cooperation vital
The government has expanded measures to help people strike a balance between nursing care and work. One measure has made it possible to take nursing care leave of up to 93 days per family member who requires nursing care and use these holidays over as many as three blocks of time. As for time off for nursing care that assumes sporadic errands such as hospital visits, it has been made possible to take time off for nursing care in half-day units.
The amount of employment insurance benefits to be paid while on nursing care leave has been increased significantly.
Nevertheless, the proportion of employees who take nursing care leave has remained at extremely low levels. There seems to be many cases, in which workers hesitate to utilize the leave system due to uncertainty about how long they will need to be away and out of consideration for their workplace.
The government should make efforts to have the content of the system, and how to use it, thoroughly known and study making it easier for workers to take advantage of the system.
Businesses are also called on to tackle the matter aggressively. An increasing number of companies have adopted more generous nursing care leave and time off for nursing care systems than those provided by the government. Distress over nursing care is often difficult to see from the outside. It is essential to carry out improvement measures, including the establishment of a counseling system and creating a workplace atmosphere in which people can express their worries frankly.
Needless to say, expansion of nursing care services is indispensable, but the problem is a serious shortage of manpower at such workplaces. Not a few operators cannot provide nursing care services to the extent they intend to. To ensure manpower in this field, the government must make greater efforts to improve the employment conditions for caregivers.
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, July 25, 2018)
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
