The Pivot Generation

By the age of 50, three fifths of people still have a living parent, and just over a third are grandparents. At the same time, around two thirds of men and women over 50 are in paid employment. This "pivot' generation of people in their fifties and sixties may thus be combining paid work with caring responsibilities, either for young grandchildren while their parents work, or for elderly or disabled relatives who require care. This topical report explores how decisions about work are affected by caring responsibilities for people aged over 50. It draws together information from a variety of sources - an analysis of trends in employment at the household level over the past 20 years, a survey of employees and those who have recently retired in both a rural and an urban area, and over 30 in-depth interviews with people over 50 - to examine the extent of caring responsibilities and how they affect choices about the timing of retirement or reducing hours of work.
Key features of the report include: an analysis of how employment patterns within households may affect the availability of people to provide care; a large-scale survey of over 1,000 employees in two different geographical areas; a focus on process, exploring how decisions are reached about employment and care and how older people feel about taking care of their grandchildren or elderly relatives; an analysis of why people do not provide care, as well as why they do; information about how employers could help older workers to combine work with caring responsibilities; and implications for often conflicting policies in relation to care for children and older people and employment in later life. "The Pivot Generation" is aimed at policy makers, employers, academics and organisations with an interest in developing childcare and eldercare, and family-friendly employment strategies.