How Women and Carers Can Be Better Supported in 2026
International Women’s Day is a moment to reflect on how far workplaces have come on gender equity, and how far they still have to go. The Modern Families Index (MFI) 2026 shows that despite years of discussion and policy change, women and carers continue to carry disproportionate pressure at work, particularly when caring responsibilities collide with working.
For employers, this matters because inclusion is not felt in statements or annual campaigns. It is experienced in day-to-day decisions about flexibility, progression and support. The MFI highlights a persistent gap between intention and impact, where support may exist on paper, but confidence, wellbeing and career progression are shaped by how work actually operates.
The question then is simple: can you afford to lose the talent most affected by care? The MFI data shows that without meaningful support, organisations face higher turnover, weaker pipelines and reduced capacity at exactly the moments they need it most.
Why women continue to shoulder the care burden
The 2026 MFI highlights women as one of the two groups facing the greatest pressure at work, alongside the sandwich generation, largely due to dual and unequal caring responsibilities.
- When childcare falls through at short notice, 1 in 4 (25%) women take unpaid time off, compared to about 1 in 5 men (21%).
- Similarly, for eldercare emergencies, the imbalance deepens. In opposite-sex households, 37% of men say their partner steps in to provide care, versus just 29% of women. This suggests that women disproportionately absorb the fallout of adult care. You can explore the full findings in the Modern Families Index 2026.
This is not about framing care as a women’s issue. It is about recognising how care is currently shared and who pays the price when systems fail. Over time, repeated disruption affects wellbeing, capacity and career sustainability. For employers, this shows up as higher absence, retention challenges and stalled progression.
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The confidence and progression gap
Caring responsibilities do not just affect schedules. They affect confidence, visibility and career decisions.
- Stress levels for working women with caring responsibilities are significant, as detailed throughout this year’s MFI.
- Confidence takes a further hit when it comes to progression, with women scoring lower than men on their belief that they can advance their careers while working flexibly.
- Many must also weigh up childcare and eldercare responsibilities before accepting a new role.
- Confidence in fair and consistent treatment from employers is also fragile.
This is not simply a confidence issue. It is also about trust. When progression routes are unclear, or flexibility seems to come with career penalties, ambition becomes cautious. Over time, this leads to fewer applications, lower engagement and stalled careers, even in organisations that publicly commit to inclusion.
Why flexibility has not levelled the playing field
Flexible and hybrid working have helped many carers stay in work. They make it easier to manage school runs, appointments and emergencies. But they have not removed pressure or bias.
The MFI shows that flexibility often changes where work happens, not how work is judged. Progression is still influenced by visibility, availability and assumptions about commitment. For carers, this creates a trade-off between using flexibility and being seen as ambitious. Because women are more likely to deal with care disruption, they feel this trade-off more sharply.
This tension between flexibility, visibility and fairness is expected to be a major focus in our upcoming Think Tank for innovation‑driven sectors, where leaders will explore how to build flexible models that genuinely support carers without compromising on momentum, performance or creativity.
The risk of performative support
Many employers believe they are supporting working parents and carers. The MFI suggests otherwise. What employees value most is support that is clear, accessible and consistently applied.
This means designing policies with employees, not for them, and basing decisions on real experiences rather than assumptions about who provides care. When organisations get this wrong, they risk losing skilled and experienced people.
International Women’s Day activities, such as the well-designed internal posts, can be a great starting point, but if the energy peaks on the 8th of March and quietly disappears by the 9th, employees notice. This is the risk of performative support. Moments of commitment that are not reinforced by everyday flexibility, consistent decision making and real accountability weaken trust over time. When care is not built into how work actually works, confidence in employer support slips.
What meaningful support looks like in practice
Employees need certainty. They need to know that using flexibility will not block progression, that care responsibilities can be discussed openly, and that managers apply policies fairly. Leaders set expectations through daily decisions, not annual campaigns. When support is consistent and predictable, confidence improves.
A moment for reflection, not resolution
The MFI gives employers evidence to ask harder questions: how women and carers really experience work, where policy and practice diverge, and what must change in 2026.
Explore the full findings in the Modern Families Index 2026, where you can see how women and carers experience work in your organisation.
