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E
nsuring
W
ork
-F
amily
B
alance
such as paid work, household management, attending to a
relationship, parenting and caregiving.
The labour force participation of Canadian women aged 20
to 64 who were married or living common-law was 47 per cent
in 1976, but had grown to 76 per cent by 2009. As a result, like
elsewhere in the world, women in Canada are delaying having
children and are first concentrating on developing their careers.
Canada is a highly educated nation. In 2011, 51 per cent
of its adult population held a tertiary qualification (56
per cent of women and 46 per cent of men), the highest
rate among Organisation for Economic Cooperation and
Development countries.
More than half of participants in the Duxbury/Higgins study
reported that they take work home with them, putting in an
average of seven extra hours a week from home. Nearly two
thirds spent more than an hour a day catching up on e-mails and
one third spent more than an hour e-mailing on their days off.
Despite the long hours and multiple roles, 15 per cent of
the Canadian workforce in 2011 said they put family ahead of
work – up from 5 per cent in 1991. Employers are responding
to the modern realities of work and family. Sixty-nine per cent
of respondents in the Duxbury/Higgins study report having
high (27 per cent) and moderate (42 per cent) flexibility with
respect to work hours and work location.
According to the polling firm Ipsos, 28 per cent of Canadians
expect to be fully retired and not working for money at age
66, while twice as many (56 per cent) are expected to work
past the traditional retirement age (27 per cent full-time/29
per cent part-time). Living and working longer adds compli-
cation to families providing care to ill, injured and palliative
family members. New data from the 2012 General Social
Survey showed that women represented the slight majority of
caregivers at 54 per cent. The survey also found that caregiv-
ing responsibilities most often fell to those aged 45 to 64, with
44 per cent of caregivers in this age category.
In 2012, about 8.1 million individuals, or 28 per cent of
Canadians aged 15 years and older, provided care to a family
member or friend with a long-term health condition, disabil-
ity or ageing needs. Six in ten caregivers in Canada were also
balancing their care responsibilities with paid work (81 per
cent of caregivers with children). Most employed caregivers
were satisfied with the current balance between their work
and home life, but they were less satisfied compared to those
not providing care (73 per cent versus 79 per cent).
Ailing parents were the most common recipients of care, with
39 per cent of caregivers looking after the needs of their own
parents and another 9 per cent doing so for their parents-in-law.
The least common were spouses, at 8 per cent, and children, at
5 per cent. Caregivers of spouses and children devoted the most
time to helping activities. Spousal caregivers typically spent 14
hours a week on some form of care, while caregivers of children
(including adult children) spent 10 hours a week.
Despite the fact that Canada has one of the largest econo-
mies in the world and one of the most stable banking systems,
families feel global economic forces at home. Approximately 2
million Canadians attend college or university, many of whom
graduate with debt. With jobs being harder to find than before
the 2008 recession, 42.3 per cent of young adults aged 20-29
years are living with their parent(s) – a significant increase
from 30 years ago. Of those, almost one quarter had left the
household at some point in the past and then returned home.
In 2012, the unemployment rate among Canadians aged
15 to 24 was 14.3 per cent, compared to 6.3 per cent for
workers age 25-54 and workers 55 and older. The percentage
of unemployed youth leaving the labour force to attend school
full-time has increased significantly.
Families in Canada who are managing multiple work
and family responsibilities benefit from having access to
a publically funded healthcare system which provides
preventative services such as immunization and prenatal
care, as well as primary care services including labour and
delivery and hospital services.
While there is still no national childcare policy and there
are only regulated child care spaces for 20.5 per cent of
Canada’s children aged 0-12, Canada has a long history of
providing maternity benefits. Outside of Québec, maternity
leave is available to mothers for 17 weeks, and parental
leave is available to be split between mothers and fathers
Women’s labour force participation has risen, and many women now develop
their careers before having children
Image: The Vanier Institute of the Family
Changing demographics
Canada’s population is ageing rapidly. The 2011 Census found
that 14.8 per cent of Canada’s population was over the age of 65.
Canadians aged 60-64 were the fastest-growing age group between
2006 and 2011 (up 29.1 per cent), and centenarians were the
second fastest (up 25.7 per cent). There were approximately 5,825
centenarians in 2011, compared to 3,795 in 2001.
According to population projections, the number of centenarians
could reach 20,300 in 2036 and even more in future years, up to
as many as 78,300 in 2061.