Canadians are Caught in a Time Crunch
More and more Canadians are struggling to meet the competing demands of the workplace, their families and their own need to refresh body and mind, according to a new CIW Report, Caught in the Time Crunch: Time Use, Leisure and Culture in Canada (PDF 1MB) released on June 15. The Report finds that more of us are working non-standard hours (weekends, evenings, nights and rotating shifts) and looking after children and seniors, while fewer of us are able to participate in social activities, attend arts performances or volunteer for culture and recreation organizations. The steep price we’re paying for this includes poorer physical and mental health and less satisfaction with the quality of our lives. The report puts forward a number of positive public policy suggestions for improving the work-life balance of Canadians. Download the full research studies on Time Use, and Leisure and Culture, the Report Highlights on Time Use, and Leisure and Culture, or read Ideas for Positive Change (PDF 58KB).
Frequently Asked Questions
- Question: There are already a number of existing indicator systems in Canada. Why do we need a new index?
- Answer: Canada lacks a single, national instrument that shows whether our quality of life, in all of its dimensions, is getting better or worse. The CIW, measuring at the national level, links up with the work of many organizations that are striving to improve quality of life at the neighbourhood, community, municipal, provincial, and regional levels. This collective action can indeed generate a powerful force – refocusing the political discourse in Canada, helping to reshape the direction of public policy that will genuinely improve the quality of life of Canadians, and holding decision makers to account for whether things are getting better or worse.
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