Statistics Canada: More than Half of Women in Canada Provide Care to Children or Adults Needing Care

Late last year, Statistics Canada released a new report based on the Canadian Social Survey. High level findings:

• Just over 3 in 10 Canadians provide care to children, and almost one-quarter do so for adults with long-term conditions or disabilities
• Women provide the majority of unpaid care
• Hours spent on unpaid care activities for care-dependent adults are highest for those caring for a partner or an adult child
• Care duties leave more than half of unpaid caregivers feeling tired, with many feeling worried or anxious
• Women were more likely to experience health consequences from their caregiving responsibilities.
• Caregiving responsibilities can also sometimes affect employment, in terms of the caregiver's work-life balance, career or benefits.

The report concludes: "Improving people's knowledge of paid and unpaid care is critical. So many adults undertake care of children and care-dependent adults, and their work is often invisible, but it is a crucial part of the overall Canadian economy and society."

The International Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (IOECD) notes: "the gap in unpaid care work has significant implications for
women’s ability to actively take part in the labour market and the type/quality of employment opportunities available to them."

Work needs to be done to value and reduce the gender gap in unpaid caregiving. In the meantime, it's important to recognize the caregiving role that many Women play, in our policies, processes, and services, both as an employer and service provider.