Most fathers say they spend equal time caring for their child — fewer mothers agree, survey says

A women covers her face as she walks past a child care centre that's closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Toronto on Friday, April 10, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

When it comes to raising a child, the majority of fathers say they share tasks equally — fewer mothers, however, tend to say the same thing.

That's according to newly released Statistics Canada data, which also found fathers spend on average 4.9 hours per day caring for their child. Mothers, on the other hand, spend nearly 1.5 times the amount of hours, averaging 7.5 per day.

The data comes from the latest Use of Time survey, which was conducted between July 2022 and July 2023. According to respondents, about 55 per cent of different-gendered parents reported sharing at least half of child care tasks equally. Fathers, however, were more likely to report that they share tasks equally.

According to the survey, 64 per cent of fathers said they shared tasks equally. Fewer mothers seemed to agree, with only 46 per cent saying tasks were equally shared.

Across different activities, fathers tended to believe there was more equal involvement than mothers.

Time pressure

The survey also looked at time pressure — areas of life strained by not having enough time for everything.

Overall, parents who reportedly shared tasks were less likely to feel pressure when it came to things like cutting back on sleep, spending time with family or friends and feeling constantly stressed.