NATION-BUILDING PROJECT PROPOSAL & PETITION
Canada's Missing Major Project: A National Care Economy Strategy
The Government Declined to Review Canada's National Care Economy Proposal. We Think You Should Have a Say.
Canada treats roads, pipelines, ports, and power systems as nation-building infrastructure but ignores the systems that allow people to go to work in the first place.
Childcare, elder care, home care, mental health supports, disability services, and caregiving supports are economic infrastructure. Without them, Canada’s workforce, productivity, and economic growth are at risk.
So, CanWCC wrote Canada's Missing Major Project, a proposal that makes the case for recognizing a National Care Economy Strategy as a nation-building project under the Major Projects Office framework.
On May 20, 2026, the Canadian Women's Chamber of Commerce submitted a proposal asking the Major Projects Office to recognize care infrastructure as a nation-building priority.
On June 1, the proposal was declined without further review.
Now we're asking Canadians what they think with Petition e-7463.
Petition e-7463 calls upon the Minister responsible for Canada-U.S. Trade, Intergovernmental Affairs and One Canadian Economy to:
- Recognize the care economy as essential nation-building infrastructure under the Building Canada Act;
- Recommend that the Governor in Council add a Canadian National Care Economy Strategy to Schedule 1 of the Building Canada Act as a designated major project;
- Direct the Major Projects Office to coordinate the development and implementation of a comprehensive national care economy strategy in collaboration with provinces, territories, Indigenous governments, care workers, caregivers, and relevant stakeholders; and
- Allocate and commit long-term federal investment and coordination toward strengthening Canada’s childcare, home care, long-term care, disability supports, mental health services, caregiving income supports, and care workforce infrastructure.
Care Infrastructure is Economic Infrastructure
This is not just a social policy conversation; it is an economic strategy conversation.
Care systems determine:
- whether parents can work,
- whether seniors can age safely,
- whether caregivers stay attached to the workforce,
- and whether Canada has the labour force needed to sustain economic growth.
Without care infrastructure, other infrastructure investments become less effective.
The care economy is already one of Canada’s largest economic sectors but it is underfunded and understaffed.
This is not a fringe issue.
- Healthcare and social services already employ roughly one in four Canadian workers.
- Paid care work contributes approximately 12% of Canada’s GDP.
- Unpaid care work may be worth between $517 billion and $860 billion annually.
Canada’s population is aging rapidly while care systems are already stretched beyond capacity.
- Canadians aged 85+ are projected to more than triple by 2075.
- Ontario alone is projected to need more than 50,000 additional PSWs and 33,000 nurses by 2032.
This is not a future problem. It is already affecting families, healthcare systems, and workforce participation today.
Women are carrying the hidden economic burden
Women perform the majority of both paid and unpaid care work in Canada.
Caregiving responsibilities often result in:
- reduced work hours,
- lower lifetime earnings,
- pension losses,
- burnout,
- and financial insecurity.
Investing in care creates jobs and economic growth
Care investments are not just expenditures; they generate measurable economic returns.
The proposal's initial costing estimates:
- more than one million jobs could be created through care economy investments,
- and approximately 30% of investments could be recouped through increased tax revenue.
International evidence also shows care investments generate strong employment growth while increasing workforce participation.
