Thank you for having us here today. My colleague Sébastien Larochelle-Côté and I are pleased to be here this morning on behalf of Statistics Canada to share data and analysis regarding what we currently know about the challenges facing senior women, where gaps exist in our data holdings and how we could potentially address these gaps.
We know that the senior population is growing quickly and that women are overrepresented among those aged 65 and over. Between 2011 and 2015, the number of seniors grew 20%, four times the growth rate for all age groups. With increasing life expectancy, people will be spending about two decades, on average, as seniors.
It should be noted that, while Canada does have an aging population, it has the second-lowest proportion of seniors among the G7 countries, after the United States. The share in Canada is below Japan, Italy, Germany, France and the United Kingdom. In fact, you may recall that in the United Kingdom, last year, their Prime Minister added “loneliness” to the Ministry for Sport and Civil Society. This highlighted a recognition that there's a need to combat the social and health issues caused by isolation.
Loneliness is certainly a reality for many people, which is why there's such interest in those who are living on their own. Women represent the majority of seniors living alone, although the share has fallen over the past several decades. In contrast, women are more likely to be part of a couple until older ages, and this is primarily because men are living longer. This could result in more social and physical support.
The current generation of senior women, similar to all generations, is a product of the socio-historical context in which particular cohorts have lived. Some younger seniors today are members of the large baby boom generation, while older seniors were born prior to World War II. This context will shape many of the experiences throughout their lives in areas such as family formation, gender roles and participation in the labour market. As younger generations grow older, greater diversity can be expected when these cohorts reach their senior years.
While we recognize that seniors are a heterogenous group, with younger seniors generally being more active and healthier than older seniors, there are greater needs as they age. For example, demand for residential care increases with age, and this disproportionately affects senior women. In 2016, at age 85 and over, there are three times as many women compared with men living in collective dwellings such as residences for seniors and nursing homes.
Senior women not living with family members have a number of vulnerabilities, including a higher likelihood of being below the poverty line. According to Statistics Canada's market basket measure, which is Canada's official poverty line, senior women who lived alone or with non-family members in 2016 were about twice as likely to be below the poverty line, compared with all senior women.
The incidence of poverty and low income can be exacerbated by other characteristics, such as the presence of a disability, aboriginal status and immigrant status. However, poverty does tend to decrease during the senior years, largely because of government programs such as GIS and OAS. Without these two programs, the poverty rate of seniors would be five times larger than it is now. Government programs also contribute to reducing the intensity of poverty.
Another significant issue is whether seniors have enough savings. According to the survey of financial security, the median net worth of unattached senior women was slightly over a quarter of a million dollars in 2016, compared with $264,000 among unattached senior men, and $730,000 among senior couples. The lack of savings can be problematic, especially if seniors require care over a long period of time. The financial situation of senior women can also vary depending on their marital status. For example, a widow may have greater financial resources than a divorced woman.
Senior women, particularly those who live alone, might not participate as much as they would like, given that they have less access to a vehicle. Without access to a car or public transport, it can be more difficult to go out, which may be why senior women are less likely than senior men to meet the minimum requirements for physical activity. On the other hand, seniors with a car and driver's licence are more likely to do volunteer work. Seniors with disabilities, including mobility problems, are particularly more likely to face transportation challenges.
The social networks of seniors can play a key role in their well-being and can be a source of emotional and practical support. Senior women are more likely to receive paid or unpaid help with daily activities than senior men, and transportation is the most common form of unpaid help. Senior women are more apt to receive unpaid help from their daughters, while for senior men it more often comes from their spouse. This also has consequences for working-age women who have to manage these responsibilities.
About twice as many senior women have unmet home care needs compared with senior men. In terms of absolute numbers, this is the largest age and sex group. As a proportion of those who reported that they needed home care, however, the share of senior women who had unmet home care needs was in the 30% range, compared with over 50% for women aged 35 to 49.
Although they do face some challenges that we have highlighted, it's also important to keep in mind that senior women reported relatively high levels of life satisfaction and good health, regardless of whether they lived alone or with others. Among seniors who lived alone, women were more likely to be satisfied with life and to be in good health compared with men.
In closing, we do have some rich sources of data to examine the challenges facing senior women. We also have data forthcoming from a number of surveys that will help shed light on issues of interest to this committee. Building on these datasets through linkages with administrative data would allow us to more fully examine some important issues affecting senior women.
However, some key gaps exist in our administrative data. For example, there's little information on people living in residential care facilities. These seniors may face different challenges than those who are still living in their homes. We know little about the type of care received, health conditions, housing costs and social interactions of residents in such institutions. Policy-makers would no doubt benefit from additional data on this topic.
Thank you for the opportunity to speak today. We look forward to your questions.
