All About Estates
By Susan J. Hyatt
May 25th, 2026
Over the past decade, a caregiving crisis has been building in the workplace. Currently, 35% of the Canadian workforce or 8 million people, are struggling and juggling their work responsibilities with caregiving duties.
It’s a perfect storm: a rapidly aging population living longer with more complex care needs and fewer family members to care for them. The stress of juggling caregiving and work responsibilities is leading to burnout, absenteeism, and significant productivity loss.
The caregiving crisis is both a social challenge and an economic one. This is not a niche issue; everyone has a parent, or ill family member, or elderly aunt or uncle who will need assistance.
For those who own or manage a company or partnership, there are caregivers on your staff whose struggles may be invisible. Many caregiver employees are hesitant to disclose their challenges for fear that the organization will underestimate their struggles. People often think caregiving is a short-term prospect of a few weeks or months for an elderly person, when in fact, it could go on for years. Many employees perceive there is a stigma around caregiving, and if they admit they are struggling, they fear they will be passed over for promotion or other work.
It’s easy to misread an employee who is grappling with caregiving. What are some of the early symptoms you might notice?
The person demonstrates fatigue and frustration, sometimes forgetting things and feeling overwhelmed and short-tempered. Colleagues may notice a change in behaviours or presentation, such as coming in late, leaving early, needing extra time off, or spending vacation time looking after a parent or sick child. The person may appear to be caught up in urgent problems and too busy to problem-solve, leading to workplace conflicts.
