Canadian caregivers perform $97B worth of unpaid labour annually

Canadian families are quietly shouldering a massive care burden — one worth $97 billion annually in unpaid labour, according to a 2026 report from the Canadian Centre for Caregiving Excellence.

The scale of the finding underscores how dependent Canada's health-care system is on family, friends, and neighbours stepping in when official support falls short. One in four Canadians is currently a caregiver, and at least half will take on the role at some point in their lives.

The report found 75 percent of caregivers surveyed were facing financial hardship, while 23 percent spend more than $1,000 a month on caregiving expenses. Of respondents, 66 percent reported balancing employment and caregiving responsibilities, adding physical, emotional, and financial pressure to their lives.

"People think there's just this big care system that once you get a diagnosis, an accident or something changes and you need care support that there is a full system and set of supports out there," said Liv Mendelsohn, executive director of the Canadian Centre for Caregiving Excellence. "And that's when people discover there really isn't. Our system depends on family, friends and neighbours to do all that."

Almost 80 percent of caregivers in Canada are approaching burnout, Mendelsohn noted. "Some of the saddest and most challenging stories are when people do reach that point of burnout."

In Edmonton, caregiver Laura Krefting described the physical and emotional toll of caring for multiple family members. When her mother developed dementia, she stepped away from work to help her father. Shortly after, her dad was also diagnosed with dementia. While they eventually moved into a seniors' residence, she remained involved in their care. Then, nine years ago, she noticed troubling changes in her husband, Doug, who was eventually diagnosed with Lewy Body dementia.

For a period, Krefting was caregiving for her parents and her husband simultaneously. "When he was acutely ill, it was 24-7," she said. The unpredictability of crises — emergency room waits stretching 13 hours, late-night monitoring to prevent falls — wore on her until she reached a breaking point.

A call to Caregivers Alberta, a support organization, changed everything. "It was a miracle because I was on the edge and I didn't know what I was going to do," she said. Now 71, Krefting handles all aspects of her husband's care — appointments, emergency visits, grocery runs, medication management, cooking, and finances — but has been able to hire some help. She acknowledges many caregivers lack that option.