Career Disruption and Employment Status of Korean Family Caregivers of Older Adults Using Home-Based Care

Abstract

This study utilized nationally approved data from the 2022 Long-Term Care Survey of Korea to examine the factors associated with career disruptions and employment status among family caregivers of home-based care recipients. Descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, one-way ANOVA, and multinomial logistic regression analysis were employed to address the research questions. The results indicated that 19.39% of family caregivers of home-based care recipients experienced career disruptions due to informal caregiving. Demographic factors such as gender, age of family caregivers, and their relationship with care recipients predicted their employment status. Gender was a significant explanatory factor, as daughters/daughters-in-law were more likely to be in insecure employment positions than sons. Lower household income and older age were also associated with employment insecurity. Recommendations include coverage expansion, family support programs, and pension credit for family caregivers to meet the needs of care recipients and their families.