The care economy, which encompasses both unpaid and paid care, provides crucial care and support to all generations, including parents, grandparents, children, and many adults who live with disabilities or long-term conditions.
Recognizing the importance of paid and unpaid care work and the need to ensure the well-being of every generation, today, Minister of Jobs and Families, the Honourable Steven MacKinnon launched a new Sectoral Table on the Care Economy that will provide advice on potential actions to support the care economy.
The Sectoral Table will focus on providing recommendations related to improving the conditions of work for the unpaid and paid care workforce, providing supports for care providers, care receivers, and equity-seeking groups, and identifying supports to address regional disparities within the care economy.
The membership will consist of a diverse range of perspectives and expertise related to the care economy, with the first meeting planned for Spring 2025. The members currently appointed to the Sectoral Table are:
- Mitzie Hunter, Chair
- Pat Armstrong, Member
- Ayla Azad, Member
- Morna Ballantyne, Member
- Peter Dinsdale, Member
- Jodi Hall, Member
- James Janeiro, Member
- Jeff Moat, Member
- Ito Peng, Member
- Caroline Senneville, Member
- Sharleen Stewart, Member
- Siobhán Vipond, Member
The Sectoral Table on the Care Economy builds on the Government of Canada's historic investments to strengthen social infrastructure. These investments have included transformative improvements in early learning and child care, improved tax support for caregivers through the Canada caregiver credit, and improved access to long-term care and other continuing care services through the Aging with Dignity agreements signed with each province and territory.
The Sectoral Table's work aligns with that of the National Seniors Council, which recently acted as an expert panel and provided recommendations to the Government on how to further support Canadians who wish to age at home and in their communities for as long as possible.
