Introduction

In this chapter, we draw together knowledge on employment legislation and payments to working carers with studies on family care of older people. The chapter focuses on adult children and other family members who care for older people in Finland and Sweden. As discussed in previous chapters, carers in general and working carers in particular have only recently become a policy issue in the Nordic countries. However, as we have also seen, the lack of political interest does not reflect a lack of actual care provided by family members. The characteristics and situations of working carers are somewhat uncharted territory in both countries. Four central questions are addressed in this chapter: ‘Who are the carers?’; ‘What kind of support is available for them?’; ‘Are their working lives affected by caring responsibilities?’; and ‘How do they perceive their everyday lives?’

In Finland and Sweden, the position of carers of older people cannot be understood without addressing the role of public actors, such as the state and municipalities. As discussed in Chapter Two, in both countries, municipalities are legally obliged to organise care for older people and a wide variety of social and health care services have been developed to meet the care needs of older people through formal, publicly funded systems.

Nevertheless, family members in both countries provide a great deal of support and help to older people, and their role seems to be growing (Kröger, 2005). In Sweden, family care (in particular, help by daughters) has increased among older people with compulsory – rather than with further – education only (Szebehely and Trydegård, 2012). The reduction of services for older people in Finland and Sweden (see Chapter Two) has happened without any significant legislative or policy change at the national level, but was possible because public care services for older people are not legally enforceable rights, and laws and regulations do not clearly define what type of services municipalities should provide. The state can steer and recommend, but municipalities are free to decide the type, eligibility criteria and coverage of the services they offer, including the extent of support for family carers.