Working Caregivers: The Invisible Employees

From Caregiver to Advocate: Dahlia Sizer’s Workplace Solutions

• Selma Archer & Zack Demopoulos • Season 1 • Episode 11

Share episode

In this episode, we sit down with Dahlia Sizer, an HR leader and passionate advocate for caregivers, to unpack how companies can create a more supportive and flexible work environment for employees juggling caregiving responsibilities.

Dahlia shares her personal caregiving journey, the impact it had on her career, and the lessons she’s carried into her HR leadership role. We talk about flexible work policies, Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), and how leadership can step up to better support caregivers. Plus, Dahlia offers practical advice for both employees and managers on navigating workplace benefits, advocating for change, and ensuring that caregiving doesn’t come at the cost of professional success. 

Dahlia Sizer is the former Director of DEI for Saint-Gobain, NA. An accomplished Human Resources Practitioner with expertise in Global Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Dahlia is adept at navigating complex organizational structures to deliver strategic vision and tailored solutions. Known as a catalyst for change, Dahlia consistently drives impactful results. Integrating deep expertise in global diversity, equity, inclusion, employee engagement, organizational behavior, project management, and recruitment, Dahlia effects substantial and positive transformation. With over a decade of experience in human resources, Dahlia's approach blends strategic vision with a deep understanding of HR policies and team leadership to foster an inclusive culture that not only retains talent but also propels the company forward.

 

Episode Highlights:

[3:32] - Dahlia’s personal caregiving story—how supporting her mother changed her life.

[9:55] - The power of building a caregiving support system—you can’t do it alone!

[12:41] - What working caregivers experience in the workplace and why workplace culture matters.

[16:53] - Tips for managers on how to support employees who are also caregivers.

[18:48] - How employees can approach their managers to ask for flexibility and support.

[21:03] - The role of Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) in advocating for caregivers.

[23:01] - Why Dahlia sought out education on caregiving for her company and how it made an impact.

[26:07] - The power of awareness—how workplace conversations about caregiving are changing.

 

Links & Resources:

 

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to follow the podcast and leave a review. Remember to check out our website at invisibleemployeeadvocates.com for more resources, and subscribe to our newsletter for updates! We’ll catch you in the next episode.

 

Dahlia Sizer:

And even coming back to work, which, in itself, is traumatic, the first thing I got was a hug from Selma saying you're going to be okay. And you know, because the grieving process, it starts from when you learn that they're sick, until years after, because you're second guessing. Did you do everything right?

Unknown:

Did you know that in 2020 there were 53 million caregivers in the United States, and by 2025 this number is expected to grow to 62 point 5,000,073% of these caregivers also have a job. They are called Working caregivers, and they are invisible because they don't talk about their caregiving challenges. Working caregivers, the invisible employees is a podcast that will show you how to support working caregivers. Join Selma Archer and Zach Dimopoulos on the working caregivers the invisible employees podcast as they show you how to support working caregivers.

Zack Demopoulos:

Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, depending on where you are today, we thank you subscribers for coming and listening to our podcast, the working caregivers, the invisible employee. I'm Zach and I'm Selma. Hey, Selma, I hope it's a lot warmer where you are than where I am in New Jersey. We're going to hit like four as the lowest, my

Selma Archer:

goodness, well, we're a little bit a little bit warmer we've been in the 30s lately. Oh

Zack Demopoulos:

man, I gotta tell you what, California has had enough going on where our hearts and thoughts go out to to all the fires that are going out in California, and so you don't need it to be real cold. You just need rain. You

Selma Archer:

got it? Yeah, rain. And let's win. So we are here with our special guest today, Dahlia sizer, from Saint goban, and we are so excited to have her with us, and we're looking forward to her insights from the inside of a company and looking out and telling us what we can do to help support working caregivers. So welcome Dahlia. Thank

Dahlia Sizer:

you. By the way, it is, I think it's 16 degrees. I'm in Delaware, so I'm not

Selma Archer:

too Oh my god, man. Well, I'm going to stop complaining, yes, because I've been complaining about the 430s and the 40s. So you guys just shut me right up. So again, welcome, and we like to start out our discussion. Tell us something interesting about Delaware. That's a

Dahlia Sizer:

good question, because I've only lived here for six months, but I will say I have gone 25 miles south of where I live, to Rehoboth Beach, and they have the best seafood outside of Maryland. So I like going. And I'm a seafood eater. I always tell people, if I were stuck on a deserted island with a group of people, I would still be the only one that's fat, because I love great seafood in Rehoboth, Delaware.

Zack Demopoulos:

Alright, we're going to have to do a shout out to them. And what's, what's the go to? What should we get off the menu there. Dahlia,

Dahlia Sizer:

I'm lobster. I like the lobster towers. Who

Zack Demopoulos:

does not like lobster towers?

Selma Archer:

Yes, that sounds pretty good. So Dahlia, let's, let's start by taking a look at your own caregiver journey with your mom. I know that you had several years of experience as a caregiver when she was she was alive. So can you just give us maybe a a short little insight into how that journey happened and what it was like for you?

Dahlia Sizer:

Well, my journey started in 2005 and luckily enough, Soma was my manager when when this happened, and so I was at work when I got a call that my mom needed me to come up to Vermont. They had just relocated to Vermont a few years before. Luckily for me, I had a manager who was very gracious. I found out that my mom was diagnosed with lung cancer, and it was in one lung. So what began this journey was every Friday, I began to drive up to Vermont from New York City and spend the whole weekend with her there. It really changed my life, because if you know my family, I am next to the baby in the family, and I've always been sort of the wild child, and all of a sudden I had this responsibility for my mom, which it really grounded me in maturing. You know. So it got to the point where, unfortunately, the cancer jumped to her other lung, and it did it pretty quickly. So what ended up happening was, again, I'm back at work every week, every week, and you know, I got a call saying your mom is now considered terminal. And I'm at work and they're telling me this, and I'm saying to myself, What do I do? What? Because this had never happened where I had to be a caregiver. I was going up for the appointments and everything, but it just turned on on a dime that now she was considered terminal. So what do I do? I'm still driving up. I'm still trying to figure this all out. And luckily, I had a manager who said, take the time off. Take the time off, go spend it with your mom, however long that may be, be up in Vermont, and don't worry about what's happening here. So that very evening, when she said that I packed up and I went up to be with my mom. Now what's important to understand is, during that time, I had to figure out how to make sure that she got to the doctors, how to make sure that, you know, the medication was filled, how to make sure that she started talking with her lawyers because she was coherent, she could make her own decisions. I'm very I was lucky in that, in that way, in that those decisions we made together, but I also had, you know, to make a living, and I was also in school at the same time, and how was I going to navigate all of these things by myself? And finally, I had to say, it's time for me to, one, make sure my brothers helped, and two, start reaching out to the family that I need help. My Condo payments still had to be paid. My Cardinals still had to be paid. My I, you know, had doctor bills that still had to be paid. I still needed to make a living, but I needed to also be with my mom. So what I did, and I tell everyone to do this, instead of waiting for people to say, Do you need help? Call, and I called her siblings, and I said, Listen, you need to go up and spend time with mom. What weekend can you go? What week can you go? I had a brother who lived in Vermont, you know, I called him and said, I need help. She's getting to the point where she's too weak to get up and cook. He would come every night after work and make her dinner. And then an uncle of mine said, who lived in New York, said, Listen, I'm retired. You know, this is my sister, and she's taking care of me. He's younger than her. I'm going up there. And so we had, you know, people come. My other brothers, I got on the phone, and I said, I don't care what you do. I don't care what you've gotta move. You gotta come up and help. And they dropped everything. And they were, they, you know, they came up. They it, what would the one special weekend was, I stayed home. All my brothers came, and they spent the whole weekend with her. And, you know, she called me and said, I can't believe that you, you did this. And then things just kind of happened. And when we got to the point where we knew that she she only had a certain amount of time. The hospital actually became involved quite a bit and sent to me a transitional worker, which means that they walked me through the steps of her transitioning, and really sat down with me and told me what the signs were, what to look for, making sure that everything was in place. So for some people, they didn't have that, they don't have that. And I'm very grateful that I had all of those things. And then when she passed, everything was in place, everything kind of fell in the right way. And I'll say this, if I didn't have a manager and a company who truly cared about what was going on, I don't know what I would have done. And I cringe at even having to think about it and even coming back to work, which, in itself is traumatic, the first thing I got was a hug from Selma saying you're going to be okay. And you know, because the grieving process, it starts from when you learn that they're sick, until years after, because you're second guessing. Did you do everything right? So was that three minutes, or was it five minutes?

Zack Demopoulos:

Don't worry, I the hug from Selma. I'm already getting my Kleenex out here.

Selma Archer:

I'm gonna just piggyback on that story. And one of the things that really jumps out. And and I think we've all experienced this as we learn that caregiving cannot be done by one person, not at it takes a team, it takes a group, it takes a family, it takes a unit. And so you know you you learned how to get that support for yourself, and you had that support it at work. So my question for you is, as an employer, now, what do you see as one of the major challenges for employers in supporting their working caregivers? This?

Dahlia Sizer:

This is a really serious because as a Gen X, we are holding the hands of baby boomers and those before them, I think they're called the silent generation. Employers have to realize that this is a time and a position that everyone is going to go through, and that this is not a time to micromanage. It really is a time to be supportive of your employee and to work with them. Sometimes, for some employers, it may be allowing them to work remote for an extended amount of time. We're in an era where we can do that. You don't have to be in the office every day if you're not face to face with a customer, I think we have to move away from the premise that people are going to work better in the office, and that's just not true with a caregiver. Being able to take that parent or that child or whomever it may be that they're being a caregiver for, go to an appointment and then come back home and go back on the computer and do work or do meetings is invaluable, not only to the employee, but to the company, because productivity does not stop, and so taking advantage of a hybrid kind of work environment or work culture is really essential.

Zack Demopoulos:

Dalia, thank you again for sharing your personal story. Sorry for your mother's loss. May her memory be eternal, and I can only imagine when she was there with all those sons sitting around her, like, Who the heck put these guys together? This is awesome. I mean, it is. But I'm just thinking about as a follow up to Salma question on the employer side, if you could just share a little bit on the employee side, as a working employee who has to care give like you did, going from New York to Vermont and doing all the things that you do and also in your current HR leadership roles, can you share a little bit about what a working caregiver goes through In terms of the workplace and work life.

Dahlia Sizer:

Well, I can also speak on that because I've been a caregiver to that same uncle who helped me with my mom. So I was a caregiver for him. I was a caregiver for an aunt. And we have a big family. My My mom had seven siblings, and so at some point, we were all caregivers at you know, and we're a caregiver now to an aunt who's in her 80s in in Florida. So it for an employer that support is so needed, and not only the employer but your colleagues, they also have to understand what you're going through, because that culture can be very nurturing for a caregiver, and just someone that you're working with that understands what you're going through, helps get the day through, and it's okay to get on to a meeting like we're having now, a teams meeting, and saying, How are you how's everything going? How can we help? Are you okay? And those words really resonates within a caregiver and and I do want to speak to caregivers who are parents that are caregivers, whether they have a child who is on the autism spectrum or have ADHD that is also so valuable for them to hear that they're being supported not only by their managers and their colleagues, but within the internal groups that we set up for our employees.

Selma Archer:

All that's That's great information. And so just wondering if you could point to something that you've experienced you know from your employer that could be duplicated across the organization as very helpful to, you know, a working caregiver, someone that was going through what you were going through at the time, because not only were you dealing with an ill parent, but you also had the distance issue, right, you know? And that makes it even harder when you have to do the traveling and you're, you're not right there where you can go across town and and and do something really quickly and get back to the job, you know? You have that distance,

Dahlia Sizer:

I think one of. The great things about Senko bond is that every single employee is given a laptop and they're able to work from home. But not only are they able to work from home, if for some reason, they have to travel around the world to some other place to be with their family, to be with their parents, they can still log in and work no matter what time it is the one of the things I stress is that I don't care what time you get your work done, as long as you meet the deadlines. So I'm not going to nitpick if I don't see the green light on when I go on my computer at eight o'clock in the morning and I don't see you there, but I've gotten the email that you have finished that project, or you have hit that deadline, or you have communicated to me what the next steps were in whatever you're doing. That is what is important. The Productivity continues to when you have a caregiver. I've had people who have actually been in the doctor's office waiting for their parents to come back with the doctor, and they're getting work done. So we have to loosen the reins on how we control people in this era where being on these platforms and having social teams and and river stream and stream yard and zoom are available to us at the drop of a dime. I've even conducted meetings on the way, taking people to appointments in my car on my company phone, and just have it mounted up on the dashboard while I'm driving so I can still participate in the meeting. Yeah,

Zack Demopoulos:

Dalia, what I mean you obviously are a caregiver, and we're a caregiver, and and as a caregiver and and you've got the experience. But how do you help like a manager with good intentions that has no experience with any of this? Are there some tips that you can give a manager?

Dahlia Sizer:

Yes, one be empathetic. There's a difference. And of course, we always say there's a difference between sympathetic and empathetic. Put yourself in the position of your employee, and make yourself a steward, or the better your word is of servantship to your employees. That's the best thing to tell a manager. Tell the manager about EAPs employee assistance programs make sure that the manager understands that that is a good avenue that an employee can take to help them navigate being a caregiver, and it's important for the employee to know that it's not just taking care of that other person, But taking care of yourself, that you have therapists available, that you have with through your insurance company, that you have numbers that you can call to say, I need help, whether it is getting support, whether it is getting therapy, whether you need a group setting, whether you need a virtual setting. So employers and managers need to know what the compensation and benefits packages that are available to their employees. That's very important. Communication, let the employee know, communicate what's going on, so that I can prepare our team to be able to fill in and those gaps where you cannot be there.

Selma Archer:

What tips do you have for that employee to go to their manager, to go to their supervisor and say, This is what I'm going through. I need support and flexibility, you know, because that's where the communication breakdown is a two way stream of communication, and if the employer doesn't know what the employee needs, there's a big gap. So exactly what tips do you have for the employee?

Dahlia Sizer:

Number one, know what your compensation and benefits package is. Most people only go to what health insurance I have, and so they never do that deep dive into that packet that they're given at the beginning of the year, or at the ending of the year for the for the new year coming in, know what your rights are in that packet, that's number one communication. It goes both ways, and being transparent about what is going on. Transparency is pivotal. One, it protects you, and two, it allows your manager to make the right decisions, to help, not only to support you, but to fill in those gaps with your team members. And those are the most vital things that that need to be happening. Take care of yourself. It's okay to have a spa day when you're going through all of this. It's okay to get your nails done. If that's what you want to do, it's okay to take a couple of hours and go to top golf and and do a few What do you call them? Putty offs, whatever it

Zack Demopoulos:

is, drives, I don't know, five,

Dahlia Sizer:

whatever it is that can help make your day a little bit better. Yeah,

Zack Demopoulos:

wow, wow. That's Amen to that. Selma is famous. I like to always quote Selma, but she's famous about always saying, put the oxygen mask on you first if you're going to help somebody else, just like the airlines. Exactly,

Dahlia Sizer:

yeah, yeah, exactly.

Zack Demopoulos:

There you go, Dalia, when Selma and I talk to our clients. Two things become apparent. One, exactly what you just said. Just to re reiterate, the communication piece, clients will admit November, December, you know, for benefit managers is like tax season for accountants, right? It's like, it's like, big sign ups and communications, but then the rest of the year, we don't really do a good job communicating benefits. So that's one thing I know, that organizations admit they could do better. But the other one that we have found that some and I have talked to clients about is that whatever you want to call them, ERGs focus groups, but they do leverage right these groups, especially around the caregiving space. Has Have you or your organization leveraged any of these. We

Dahlia Sizer:

do have ERGs, which are employee resource groups. Some people call them BRGs, business resource groups, and we have committees. So we have a parent committee that sort of fills in for parents. Our ERGs have been advocates pushing for better benefits for working caregivers. And so with single bond, they started an initiative that's been rolling out for 2025 for working caregivers. But really, everything starts with grassroots within an organization. If you don't ask for it, it won't happen. And so tapping into those employee resource groups, if you're not a member, become a member. Become an ally, let them know, because most employee resource groups will do surveys, whether it is once a quarter, whether it's annually, whether it's biannually, and put in there, I really do want to know more about caregiving. And what can you advocate for better compensation and benefits packages that also encompass working caregivers? Ask for Is there a neurodiversity initiative ask for those things? Is there something that helps our employees who are retiring and maybe facing these things, is there something that we can tap into so that we can start preparing if, in the event we become caregivers, or need to be given caregiving, so you have to advocate. I

Zack Demopoulos:

love that. I love that, Dahlia, we know you're a caregiver advocate and a leader, you approached us, yes, one day about doing some education for your organization, which normally says someone I are approaching clients to ask them if they'd like to do it. But you, you came to us. Why did you come to us and and now that we did the webinar, what? What did you What do you think the benefits were? What was the feedback on it.

Dahlia Sizer:

Well, I have to tell you about how I found out you were writing a book. Was I actually called someone? I call her periodically because she is my mentor. I I probably say that to everyone. Someone has been a big mentor, a big cheerleader for my dei journey. And I called her to talk to her about, I believe it was just something I wanted to do. And you know, whether I'm making the decision, oh yes. And I wanted to ask her to be on a board of a non profit organization that I am a vice chair for. And at the time, she says, Well, I'm writing a book, and I don't know if I'll be able to do that right now. And I'm writing it. My writing partner, Zach, and I said, of course, me being nosy what book? Because I'm nosy. So she told me about the working caregiver at that point, and the book wasn't it hadn't been finished yet, but I said to her, this is something we need. You know, I would love to read it. I would love to help on that journey to get this message out. And finally, when the book came, not that I'm pushing you, that it took that

Zack Demopoulos:

long. It did. Took six years.

Dahlia Sizer:

It did. Finally, when the book came out, you sent me the copy of it, and I read it, and I was like, did you tell my story? Because this seems like the story that you it wasn't my exact story, and so many of us have the same story, and I said, I gotta have you in for an interview when you all are ready to really start doing a webinar, doing please, I'd like to have you in. And after that, it was a matter of getting you scheduled. I asked one of our ERGs, which is called lead, to go ahead and facilitate this and and make it work. At the same time, I started talking to our benefits team about working caregivers, and they were and they started saying, well, we've been thinking about that. And I said, it would be great if you watch this. We were able to get some of your books, and we passed it out to our Senior VP of HR and to our i. Our CHRO, our communications team and our ERGs and everyone loved the book. You know that working caregiver and I can't wait for your next

Zack Demopoulos:

book. We thank you for your support. But on behalf of working caregivers. We thank you for the leadership you are doing in HR and your organization to support caregivers. It's amazing. Yeah, we have time for one more some if you want to. Yeah,

Selma Archer:

just wondering in terms of the benefits of of our webinar. Like, did you? Did you hear feedback regarding, you know, because our goal and being there, as you know, we discussed before we came we and we had meetings with you about, basically just raise awareness around the whole working caregiver issue that you have IT organization, whether you know it or not, right and a majority of your employees are going To be impacted by it. So what, what do you think were with some of the benefits of of having the webinar, the greatest

Dahlia Sizer:

benefit was to bring awareness to our Compton benefits program that this is something that's needed and that looking ahead, including that as part of your FMLA, which is your family medical leave or leave of absence. Making this a part of it is essential to evolving as an organization, and so it is on their purview. It is on their radar. It is talked about when we have leadership meetings, and integrating it into the fabric of Saint bond is an imperative for the benefits teams.

Selma Archer:

As Zach said, we're so happy that we were able to be a part of that experience. It was great. It was great for us, as you know, as well as for the company. So we really

Zack Demopoulos:

was, and we can't wait to have some of that lobster tower down at the beach with we got

Dahlia Sizer:

to meet down there, and then we'll go to one of those restaurants. I know what I know what it looks like, but I couldn't even tell you the

Selma Archer:

name. Well, thank you so much, Dahlia for joining us. Joining joining us today. We really appreciate your insights as an employer and your insights regarding your own caregiver experience and the lessons you've learned. So thank you so much. We truly appreciate you joining us as our guest today.

Dahlia Sizer:

Thank you is a pleasure. Thank you both so much. Thank you,

Zack Demopoulos:

Delia, you rock. Thank you.

Unknown:

Thank you for tuning in. Be sure to catch new episodes of working caregivers the invisible employees podcast every other Tuesday. Please also visit our website, invisible employee advocates.com to subscribe to our newsletter, purchase our book and learn more about how we can help you strengthen your workplace to become more supportive of working caregivers you.