Carers and Employment

Almost two thirds of working age Carers are in some sort of paid employment, there are currently three million working carers here in the UK. A third of those working full-time provide care for more than 20 hours per week. Carers lose on average £9,000 a year by having to reduce their working hours.  Combining work and caring can be very difficult. There may be a need to take time off work to look after the cared for person when an emergency occurs and returning to a job when caring has ended can mean facing significant barriers such as:

• loss of confidence and work skills
• invisibility to mainstream services such as JobCentre Plus 
• finding good quality, flexible and affordable alternative care 
• finding an understanding and flexible employer 
• bridging the gap between benefits and work

The Government has acknowledged the importance of a Carer being able to do this and at the same time have your rights to employment protected.

Click the following link for the Carers page.

The Right to Have Time Off

The Work and Families Act 2006 and the Employment Rights Act 1996 give working carers rights to help you manage work and caring including the right to request flexible work and leave entitlement. 

These rights apply to employees.  Your employment status can affect your entitlement to statutory rights.  If, for example, you are self employed, on a short term contract or employed through an agency you may not be covered by these rights.  If this applies to you it is important to seek advice from ACAS on Tel: 08457 47 4747.  Please click on the following link for further information on
'Time Off'. 

Leave Arrangements

You now have a right to take a 'reasonable' amount of time off work to deal with an emergency involving a dependant. This right also includes some protection from victimisation or dismissal when you use it. It is at the employer's discretion whether the leave is paid or unpaid.
Situations where leave might be taken include:

• a disruption or breakdown in care arrangements 
• if a dependant falls ill or has been assaulted or in an accident including when the victim is hurt or upset rather than physically injured 
• to deal with an incident involving a child during school hours 
• to make longer term arrangements for a dependant who is ill or injured 
• to deal with the death of a dependant

You need access in your workplace to information and advice, directly or through signposting. Find out what is available through your:

• personnel officer 
• welfare officer or occupational health advisor 
• union or staff association representative 
• colleagues

Support might include an in-house information line, intranet or carers network, or access to an Employee Assistance Programme. 

Flexible Working

Please click the following link for more information about Work-Life Balance (links to external website).

The right to request flexible working

From April 2003, parents of children under six, or 18 if the child is disabled, have had a right to request flexible working such as changing hours or working from home.  The Work & Families Act 2006 extended this right to carers.  This applies to employees who have worked for their employer for 26 weeks. You will have to make a written application to make a permanent change to your terms and conditions. Only one request is allowed each year so it is important that you think carefully about the financial and caring considerations. If your request is refused, your employer must give good reasons and you can appeal.

You can use leave arrangements, paid or unpaid at the discretion of your employer, to cover intensive periods of care. Find out if your employer has provisions for carers leave, or compassionate leave.
If you are thinking of giving up work because of a long-term caring commitment, find out if your employers could offer you a career break, allowing you to keep your options open, ensuring that you can go back, and keeping you in touch with the world of work.

If you have one year's service you are now entitled to thirteen weeks parental leave to care for a child, this increases to eighteen weeks for a disabled child.

Leave can be taken in blocks of one week up to a maximum of four weeks leave in a year (for each child); or in one day, or multiples of a day if the leave is to care for a disabled child, again to a maximum of four weeks in a year.

You may take leave at any time up to a child's fifth birthday; but for the parents of a disabled child, leave may be taken any time up the child's 18th birthday.

Visit the Employers for Carers website for more information about what employers can do to support working carers at www.carersuk.org/employersforcarers

Additional Information

If you think you, or someone in your family might benefit from any service provided by Social Services and you would like us to contact you by phone or email, please click the following link and complete the Social Services Contact Us/Self Referral Online Form and someone will be in touch with you as soon as possible.