Despite progress, one-parent families headed by mothers continue to face labour market, affordability challenges

For many one-parent families (OPFs), being able to make ends meet is an ongoing challenge. As some key data show, mothers continue to make up an outsized proportion of parents in OPFs rising to this challenge.

Recently released findings from the 2021 Census of Population show that, among the 268,170 OPFs with young children counted nationwide that year, more than four in five (81.2%) were headed by mothers.

The rate of OPFs headed by mothers is 3.4 percentage points down since 1981 (84.6%), an indication of the outsized representation of mothers among OPFs throughout Canada’s history.

Not only that, but mothers in OPFs also continue to face gaps in the labour market and are more likely to face poverty and food insecurity.

Progress in the labour market, but gaps remain

A Statistics Canada study released in the fall using Labour Force Survey data found that, from 1997 (62%) to 2023 (73%), the employment rate for all mothers living with at least one young child (aged 5 years or younger) rose 11 percentage points.

However, the same study found that, on average, hourly wages for unpartnered mothers of young children were 19% lower than mothers who were married or living common law, a pattern virtually unchanged since 1997. This gap narrowed considerably when factors such as differences in occupation and educational attainment were taken into account.

Another study released in the fall using census data found that although women’s average hourly wages have increased faster than men’s, a gender wage gap persists. In 2021, women earned 8.7% less than men among middle managers, and among senior managers, women earned 9.0% less. The gaps have decreased since 2001: that year, the wage gap between women and men middle managers was 19.3% and that between women and men senior managers was 20.0%.

The study also found that the representation of women among middle and senior managers increased with the age of the youngest child.

Other analyses using 2021 Census data found that the prevalence of low income in 2020 was almost four times higher among persons in OPFs (26.0%) than among persons in couple families with children (6.7%). The prevalence was higher for persons in OPFs headed by a woman (27.4%) than those headed by a man (21.1%). As well, persons in OPFs headed by an immigrant woman (26.5%) were most likely to be in low income, followed by persons in OPFs headed by a non-immigrant woman (24.1%), immigrant man (21.4%) and non-immigrant man (18.5%).

Poverty and food insecurity

Nearly one-quarter of people living in OPFs were below the poverty line in 2022. Those in OPFs headed by a woman were almost four times more likely to live below the poverty line (23.8%) than those in couple families with children (6.3%).

Close to one in two persons (46%) in OPFs headed by a woman experienced food insecurity in 2022, compared with nearly one-third (32.3%) of those in OPFs headed by a man and nearly one in four (22.9%) people in Canada overall.

Where are we now?

Affordability continues to be a top concern for households. In spring 2024, more than half (55%) of multiple-person households with children reported that their ability to meet day-to-day expenses is greatly affected by rising prices, higher than those with no children (42%) and those with one person living alone (37%).

Although the inflation rate has slowed in recent months, following a 40-year high reached in June 2022, several years’ worth of price increases have affected family budgets. For example, from October 2021 to October 2024, prices have increased for food purchased from stores (+20.3%), rented (+21.2%) and owned (+19.5%) accommodation, and private transportation (+10.1%).

Prices for public transportation were virtually unchanged over the same period. Prices for child care services decreased (-28.4%), partially due to the implementation of the Early Learning and Child Care Agreements with the provinces and territories. However, public transportation and child care services remain significant expenditure categories for families.

According to the latest population estimates, there were 1,836,828 OPFs in Canada on July 1, 2024, up from 1,771,398 (+3.7%) on the same date in 2021. This was below the rate of growth over the same period among total census families (+5.8% to 10,929,522).