Work–care reconciliation strategies for a variety of informal carers : what works and what does not?

Potočnik, Tjaša (author), Hlebec, Valentina (author)

Objectives: The aim of this study is to describe and examine reconciliation strategies for reconciling work and informal care that are aimed at different types of working carers (carers of the following: family members with dementia; partners; children under 18; adult children; parents; other family members). Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey to examine structural strategies for a work–care balance throughout the caregiving period, followed by the frequency of the use of strategies in the last 12 months to better understand what is an effective work–care balance strategy for different working carer types. Hierarchical cluster analysis was conducted in February 2025 on 299 working carers drawn from a representative sample of adult Slovenian residents in an online probability panel. Results: The results show five clusters of carers that clearly indicate their use of reconciliation strategies depends on the national context, the work organisation and employees, the family structure, the value orientation of informal carers, and the type of care recipient. Conclusions: A variety of policy measures are needed to enable informal carers to remain active in the labour market while they care for dependent family members and relatives.

• Language: English
• Keywords: reconciliation strategies, working carers, work-care balance
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: FDV - Faculty of Social Sciences
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2025
• Number of pages: Str. 1-25
• Numbering: Vol. 13, issue 16, [article no.] 1961
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-177579
• UDC: 364:331.54
• ISSN on article: 2227-9032
• DOI: 10.3390/healthcare13161961
• COBISS.SI-ID: 245343491
• Publication date in RUL: 24.12.2025

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Healthcare
• Shortened title: Healthcare
• Publisher: MDPI AG
• ISSN: 2227-9032
• COBISS.SI-ID: 520110873

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: strategije usklajevanja, zaposleni negovalci, ravnovesje med delom in oskrbo

Projects

• Funder: ARIS - Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency
• Project number: P5-0193
• Name: Analiza dela, izobraževanja in zaposlovanja

• Funder: ARIS - Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency
• Project number: J5-50160
• Name: Skrita diskriminacija družinskih neformalnih oskrbovalcev pri zaposlovanju in delu