A new poll has found The COVID-19 pandemic has created deeper challenges for mothers and caregivers
The Canadian Women's Foundation launched The Mother Rising in 2021 with a national poll that found many mothers and caregivers were nearing their breaking point.
And another survey done last month found circumstances have not improved for caregivers. Moms are disproportionately being impacted, especially when it comes to their health and careers.
The poll finds moms are overworked, overwhelmed, and undervalued; their mental health was suffering.
A media release says the poll showed the pandemic's burdens were even greater for those experiencing poverty, discrimination, and gender-based violence.
At this stage of the pandemic, 44 percent of moms have reached their breaking point, compared with 32 percent of dads. Almost half of moms (48 percent) are reaching their breaking point, compared with 46 percent of moms in 2021.
A significantly higher percentage of moms are more concerned about their physical health this year (67 percent) than last year (55 percent). Three in five moms are concerned about their emotional well-being (67 percent) and their mental health (62 percent). Moms continue to be significantly more likely than dads to feel anxious and sad. And those feelings aren't diminishing much for moms: In 2022, 41 percent of moms felt anxious (43 percent in 2021) and 24 percent of moms felt sad (26 percent in 2021).
Two in five moms (37 percent) have put their career on the back burner to manage home and caregiving responsibilities. Nearly half of moms (47 percent) find it exhausting to balance work and childcare responsibilities.
Compared to last year, significantly more moms than dads agree that they do more work than their spouse when it comes to caregiving. 68 percent of moms said they are doing more than their spouse to manage caregiving dependent's schedules and activities (compared with 23 percent of dads). 58 percent of moms said they are doing more than their spouse to support caregiving dependent's education (compared with 23 percent of dads). And 57 percent of moms said they are doing more than their spouse to make arrangements for caregiving dependents when schools are closed or children are ill (compared with 22 percent of dads).
39 percent of moms are struggling to keep up with their work demands, compared to 25 percent of dads; this number has increased significantly for moms (up from 28 percent in 2021).
The vast majority of moms (96 percent) agree that mothers and caregivers have been significantly impacted by the pandemic and need more support.
This Mother's Day, the Canadian Women's Foundation is empowering mothers and caregivers to rise. That means funding important community programs throughout Canada that remove barriers for women, gender-diverse people, mothers, and caregivers. That means funding programs to help them move out of violence, out of poverty, and into confidence and leadership. It's also important for these programs to include wraparound supports that make them more accessible (like childcare, food, and transit). And it's also part of the Foundation's work to do the advocacy and policy work necessary to create meaningful change that will benefit mothers and caregivers, and that will build gender justice in Canada.