Supporting carers at UNSW Sydney
Findings from the Career Coaching for Carers (3C) initiative
Published Date: 23.11.2023
Theme: Income and paid work
Sub-theme: Support at work
Verification Statement
This publication / resource is hosted on a publicly available external link. If the full text is not publicly accessible, summary points are included and a contact method for the author(s) is provided, where available.
The summary information presented is based on content submitted by an author or other user, along with publicly available information about the publication / resource added by the Carer Knowledge Exchange team.
All content is reviewed, edited and approved by the Carer Knowledge Exchange team, in line with our Submission Guidelines.
To report an issue or request a change, please complete our Feedback Form.
Theme: Income and paid work
Sub-theme: Support at work
Verification Statement
This publication / resource is hosted on a publicly available external link. If the full text is not publicly accessible, summary points are included and a contact method for the author(s) is provided, where available.
The summary information presented is based on content submitted by an author or other user, along with publicly available information about the publication / resource added by the Carer Knowledge Exchange team.
All content is reviewed, edited and approved by the Carer Knowledge Exchange team, in line with our Submission Guidelines.
To report an issue or request a change, please complete our Feedback Form.
Supporting carers at UNSW Sydney
Findings from the Career Coaching for Carers (3C) initiative
Published Date: 23.11.2023
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Author/ Authors
Lizzie Muller
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Suggested citation (APA 7th edition)
Muller, L., Thomson, C., Hill, T., & Kusuma, A. (2023). Supporting Carers at UNSW Sydney, Findings from Career Coaching for Carers (3C) initiative. https://www.inside.unsw.edu.au/social-impact/new-report-calls-greater-support-carers-unsw
Long Summary
This report shares the results of research conducted during a coaching program for staff with caring responsibilities. It was developed in 2021 as a targeted response to the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on the career progression of cis and trans women academics with carer responsibilities. Research aimed to evaluate the impact of the program, and to discover more about carer's experiences at UNSW and the kind of support required.
Key Messages for Carers
- Carers do not have the capacity to be both carers and advocates for caring at the same time. It is important to remove the burden from carers to educate managers about the nature of care work, and the need to repeatedly explain their caring situation.
- Carer Advocates with lived experience of caring, appointed from within the existing staff of each faculty, would support carers practically to overcome some of the barriers they face in management of work-life balance and career progression.
Key Messages for Policy Makers
- Momentum is growing at a state, national and international level towards valuing employed carers, and ensuring equity and support in their workplaces.
- Recommendations to increase carers' access to leave, flexible work arrangements and secure employment to ensure they do not experience lifetime impacts on pay and income in retirement due to their caring responsibilities.
- There is increasing recognition that supporting carers in the workplace makes good business sense, with benefits such as improving staff retention and reducing recruitment and training costs, improving staff morale, and increasing productivity.
- Many women carers struggle with insecure and part time work due to their caregiving and the lack of social support in and beyond university. Insecure and part-time work often precludes carers from participating in executive decision making and thus the means to effect change.
- Career planning processes must positively address the connection between carer responsibilities and part time and casual work. Planning processes also need to positively address the fact that carers may have non-typical career paths that do not conform to standard templates.
