Making the Case for the Care Economy: Evidence for workforce investment
United Way Centraide Canada · 2026
Canada’s labour-market data reveal substantial recruitment and wage pressures in the occupations central to community care. Making the Case for the Care Economy shows how that evidence can inform a nonprofit workforce strategy.
Written by Steven Ayer of Common Good Strategies for United Way Centraide Canada, the report draws on Statistics Canada sources, sector surveys and administrative data.
It found that vacancies in selected occupational groups central to community care rose 140% between 2015 and 2025. Wages offered in these roles also grew more slowly than in other occupations. These occupation-based findings sit alongside evidence about nonprofit workers’ earnings, wellbeing and intentions to leave.
The report identifies how existing data can pinpoint hiring pressures, track job quality and connect workforce conditions with organizations’ finances. It also sets out priorities for filling evidence gaps.
For funders and policymakers, this strengthens the case for investment in the people delivering community services—and provides a clearer basis for deciding which occupations, working conditions and funding pressures need attention first.