This would cause them to be become dependent on their children as well. As a result, a viscous circle would be created that would be quite difficult to break.
The growing problem of the sandwich generation is making quite a significant impact on the society as well. A person's withdrawal from the workforce to take care of another person causes a short and a long-term decrease in the state's tax revenue. As mentioned before, increasing financial burdens are causing this working class to experience physical and mental health problems. Due to this reason, they are also likely to require additional health care series as well. This means increased health care services and public expenditure costs for the society as whole.
Seeing how this is growing problem in the country, the government and society needs to act to reduce the burden on the sandwich population. In 2004, the government of Canada introduced the Compassionate Care Benefits Insurance program (CCB) the CCB is considered a special benefit for employment insurance. It provides temporary support for eligible workers who take leave to care for a family member who has a risk of death within six months. In order to be eligible for this form of support, the person has to submit a valid medical certificate. Even though this support is good for the caregivers, the eligibility criterion is quite strict. The critiques of this program have stated that CCB should be provided to all those who provide adequate levels of care to their family. Furthermore, this should also be extended to include relationships like aunts, uncles and in-laws. This program should also provide access to contract, temporary or self-employed workers as well.
Nonetheless, since caregivers are not the official recipients of the health and social services systems, they are not given much attention by the policy makers. Therefore, the needs and the requirements of the caregivers should also be considered. The support that is present for the caregiver right now is quite fragmented. There are many forms of supports like compensation programs, tax credits and workplace policies present. Nonetheless, the access and the criteria for these programs are so limited that not every caregiver has access to it very easily.
This question and research has informed me about the country's situation to quite an extent. It shows that as a country and a society, we all need to work more and think of ways to...
Everyone loves their family members and we cannot simply refuse to take care of them. This problem has therefore enlightened me about the burdens and the pressures that are plaguing our society today. This only guides me to become more productive so I can go on to assist my family and my country in a better way. One thing that this problem has highlighted is that the government and the society need to focus more on the needs and the requirements of the caregivers as well. It is true that the elderly are more vulnerable but the care-giving segment is the one responsible for moving this society forward. They need all the support and help that they can get to continue supporting their families and their parents at the same time. I would want to know how businesses and corporations could help in this situation. As mentioned before, the economic and financial strains are present because these people cannot perform productively at work. Companies should therefore come up with ways that would help this segment work and simultaneously take care of their family as well. Work that can be done at home should be offered to these people so they earn money and care for their family at the same time.
References
Bouw, B. (2013). Canada's 'sandwich' generation financially strapped. [online] Retrieved from: http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/blogs/pay-day-/canada-sandwich-generation-financially-strapped-153353957.html [Accessed: 28 Mar 2014].
Brink, S. (2004). Elder care. Ottawa: Caledon Institute of Social Policy.
Duxbury, L., Higgins, C. & Schroeder, B. (2009). Balancing Paid Work and Caregiving Responsibilities: A Closer Look at Family Caregivers in Canada. [report] Ottawa, Ontario.
Keefe, J.M. & Medjuck, S. (1997). The contribution of long-term economic costs to predicting strain among employed women caregivers. Journal of Women & Aging, 9 (3), pp. 3 -- 25.
Statistics Canada. (2000). Women in Canada 2000: A Gender-Based Statistical Report. Catalogue no. 89-503-XPE. [report] Ottawa, Ontario: Statistics Canada.
Statistics Canada. (2002). General Social Survey Cycle 16. Caring for an Aging Society.
Wiles, R. (2014). 'Sandwich generation' put own retirement at risk to help family. [online] Retrieved from: http://www.azcentral.com/business/consumer/articles/20131007sandwich-generation-retirement-risk.html [Accessed: 28 Mar 2014].
