We are not taking Canada’s fertility crisis seriously enough
Having strong and stable families is an essential goal for any society that wants to maximize human flourishing, both now and in the future. And yet, not just in Canada but across the Western world, families have been buffeted for more than a generation by changing economic and social trends that have drastically reduced family formation.
There are certainly the financial aspects impacting birth rates, but I’m guessing the major factor is social.
Québec parents, for example, have subsidised daycare, receive CCB payments amounting to several thousands in tax free income, are granted parental leave and are given priority for other social benefits (housing etc.). However, their birth rate per woman continues to drop, from 1.7 in 2008 to 1.33 last year.
Of course, having babies is entirely the choice of women and they have the option of abortion if something goes awry – almost 100,000 times in 2022. In my personal observations their viewpoints on having children are deeply affected by their childhood family life.
They see their mothers working full time at a job only to be run ragged with the majority of the household chores and childcare when they return home. They experience traumatic family breakup and reforming. Their mothers have no time to teach them how to cook, clean and and shop for groceries, so the girls (and boys) grow up without the basic knowledge required to maintain a household and are not inclined to do so. They far prefer to spend the necessary time on social media and their money on fast food. They are unequipped for child rearing and they know it.
In my opinion, mandatory, coed “domestic sciences” and personal finance courses throughout secondary school may make a difference. Throwing ever increasing amounts of taxpayers’ money on other programs doesn’t appear to be having an effect.
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There are certainly the financial aspects impacting birth rates, but I’m guessing the major factor is social.
Québec parents, for example, have subsidised daycare, receive CCB payments amounting to several thousands in tax free income, are granted parental leave and are given priority for other social benefits (housing etc.). However, their birth rate per woman continues to drop, from 1.7 in 2008 to 1.33 last year.
Of course, having babies is entirely the choice of women and they have the option of abortion if something goes awry – almost 100,000 times in 2022. In my personal observations their viewpoints on having children are deeply affected by their childhood family life.
They see their mothers working full time at a job only to be run ragged with the majority of the household chores and childcare when they return home. They experience traumatic family breakup and reforming. Their mothers have no time to teach them how to cook, clean and and shop for groceries, so the girls (and boys) grow up without the basic knowledge required to maintain a household and are not inclined to do so. They far prefer to spend the necessary time on social media and their money on fast food. They are unequipped for child rearing and they know it.
In my opinion, mandatory, coed “domestic sciences” and personal finance courses throughout secondary school may make a difference. Throwing ever increasing amounts of taxpayers’ money on other programs doesn’t appear to be having an effect.