Employers can provide better support to female employees with caregiving responsibilities by adjusting their benefits strategy and including men in the conversation, says Sarah Kaplan, founding director of the Institute for Gender and the Economy at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management.
“We have a system that’s simply not designed for caregivers. Women are expected to be hard-charging professionals while also shouldering the majority of caregiving responsibilities, and there’s little support for how to navigate both. At the same time, men are often excluded from the caregiving conversation entirely, which reinforces outdated gender roles and prevents real progress.”
She notes some employers may underestimate the realities of caregiving. “Whether it’s elder care or childcare, the system assumes someone else is handling it — and that assumption has real consequences. It leaves women overburdened and unsupported, and it sidelines men from playing an active role in care, which is just as damaging.”
Read: 6.1 million Canadian workers juggling jobs and caregiving: report
However, employers don’t need to make radical changes to their benefits strategy in order to better support women caregivers. “Even modest changes like more flexible hours or care-inclusive leave can make a measurable difference, but only if we’re willing to see women’s health as part of the business strategy.”
A recent report by virtual health-care platform Maple found 93 per cent of ‘sandwich generation’ caregivers — employees who are caring for children and elderly parents — said their dual responsibilities have negatively impacted their own health and a third (31 per cent) said caregiving has led them to delay seeking care for themselves.
It also cited a 2022 report by Statistics Canada that found women contribute nearly 30 per cent of Canada’s gross domestic product through paid work and take on an estimated $490 billion in unpaid labour.
“Women’s health isn’t a separate issue — it’s tied to culture, inclusion and the kind of workplace you want to build,” said Amii Stephenson, vice-president of sales at Maple, in an emailed statement to Benefits Canada. “This is about business, too. When people feel supported, they stay. Teams work better, retention improves and costs drop.”
In order to better support employees, employers’ benefits plans don’t need a complete overhaul — they just need to evolve, she added. “It’s about small, smart steps that reflect real life.”