More than 1,500 UK workers a day are estimated to be leaving employment to care for a loved one, according to research highlighting an increasingly difficult collision between paid employment and unpaid caring responsibilities.
The figures come as the UK continues to examine how employment protections can help people remain economically active while caring for relatives, partners, friends and other dependants.
Research from Carers UK.org has previously highlighted what it describes as a “tipping point”, where the combined pressures of work and caring can become impossible to sustain. Nearly half — 47% — of working carers surveyed for that research said they were considering reducing their hours or leaving employment altogether.
For the UK workforce, this is not simply a story about care. It is about experienced people potentially disappearing from workplaces, losing earnings and interrupting careers because their responsibilities outside work have become impossible to reconcile with their jobs.
More than one million estimated to have left work in two years
The latest figures provided to the media by Carers UK suggest around one in five workers is now balancing employment with unpaid caring responsibilities, up from 15% in 2019.
Six per cent of respondents said they had left their job completely to care for a family member or friend who was older, disabled or seriously ill.
Carers UK estimates that one in five UK adults providing unpaid care equates to approximately 11 million people.
The charity further estimates that the proportion who have left employment to provide care represents around 3.33 million people, with more than one million estimated to have done so during the previous two years.
Behind those enormous numbers are individual workers facing decisions about wages, working hours, pensions, career progression and whether they can continue working at all.
Why losing working carers matters to the UK workforce
When an experienced employee leaves, the consequences can reach beyond one household.
An employer may lose years of knowledge and skills. Recruitment and training may be needed to replace that worker, while colleagues can face additional pressure during the transition.
For the individual, leaving employment can mean the immediate loss of earnings alongside longer-term consequences for pension contributions, career progression and financial independence.
That makes retaining people who want to continue working while caring an important workforce issue.
Carers UK reports that 74% of carers in employment said being able to work supported their wellbeing, including through social contact, confidence and having time away from caring responsibilities.
The Workers Union believes workers should understand their employment options before reaching a point where resignation appears to be the only solution.
Our guidance on flexible working and work-life balance provides practical information for workers considering changes to their working arrangements.
What rights do unpaid carers currently have at work?
This is particularly important because many workers may not realise that specific employment rights already exist.
Since 6 April 2024, eligible employees in England, Scotland and Wales have had a statutory right to take unpaid carer’s leave.
Under the current rules, an employee can take up to one week of unpaid carer’s leave every 12 months to give or arrange care for a dependant who has a long-term care need.
Importantly, it is a day-one employment right.
The official GOV.UK guidance on unpaid carer’s leave confirms that the dependant does not necessarily have to be a family member. Someone who relies upon the employee for care can qualify.
Employees can take their entitlement as a complete week, individual days or half-days. Their normal employment protections, including holiday rights and the right to return to their job, continue during carer’s leave.
Can my employer refuse carer’s leave?
The distinction between refusing and delaying carer’s leave is important.
According to Acas guidance on carer’s leave, an employer cannot simply refuse a qualifying employee’s statutory carer’s leave request.
An employer can, however, ask for the leave to be taken at another time where the employee’s absence would cause serious disruption to the organisation.
Where leave is delayed, specific requirements apply. The employer must agree another date within one month of the date originally requested and provide its reason for the delay in writing within the required timeframe.
Employees also do not normally have to provide evidence of their dependant’s care needs when requesting statutory carer’s leave.
For workers dealing with an unexpected emergency involving a dependant, different provisions concerning emergency time off may also be relevant.
Flexible working could help some carers remain in employment
Carer’s leave is only part of the picture.
A worker providing continuing care may need something more permanent than several days away from work.
Changing starting and finishing times, working fewer days, adjusting hours or adopting another flexible arrangement could potentially make the difference between remaining employed and leaving work.
The Workers Union’s UK workers actively looking for a new job with more flexibility shows worker sentiment towards this.
There are also signs that flexible working will remain an important part of the government’s wider employment reforms. Updated government material published on 15 September 2026 says flexibility can help carers and parents remain in work and says changes through the Employment Rights Act are intended to make it more likely that flexible-working requests are accepted.
For workers considering different employment patterns, The Workers Union also provides information about part-time work and employment rights.
Could paid carer’s leave be introduced?
This is where the situation could change significantly.
The government launched a consultation on 9 June 2026 examining employment rights for unpaid carers and parents of seriously ill children. It closed on 1 September 2026.
The government’s consultation on employment rights for unpaid carers considered whether additional support is required and what forms of support could help carers balance employment with their responsibilities.
Separately, the government’s published terms for its review state that officials are examining different models of paid carer’s leave, alongside possible extensions to existing unpaid leave.
Carers UK has argued for a statutory right to paid carer’s leave. Its formal response to the government’s consultation, published on 2 September 2026, supported stronger employment rights for unpaid carers.
There is an important distinction for workers, however: statutory paid carer’s leave has not currently been introduced. The existing statutory carer’s leave entitlement remains unpaid.
What should workers consider before leaving their job?
For somebody trying to manage employment alongside caring for an elderly parent, disabled partner, seriously ill relative or another dependant, resignation can sometimes appear to be the only practical answer.
Before making that decision, workers should consider the employment options available to them.
Check the employer’s carer’s leave, compassionate leave and special-leave policies. Establish whether statutory carer’s leave applies. Consider whether a flexible-working request could make the situation manageable. Discuss temporary adjustments where appropriate and keep important requests and responses in writing.
Workers can also use The Workers Union help and advice resources to understand workplace issues before deciding on their next steps.
This is especially important because leaving employment can have consequences beyond the immediate loss of salary.
A resignation can affect future earnings, pension contributions, professional development and career continuity.
Government research reveals the real-world challenge
The debate is also being informed by direct research with unpaid carers.
The Department for Business and Trade commissioned qualitative research into the early impact of the Carer’s Leave Act 2023. Researchers interviewed 50 unpaid carers who were either working or had recently left employment.
The government research into the experiences of unpaid carers was designed specifically to understand how the new entitlement was operating in practice and to inform the wider review of carers’ employment rights.
That real-world experience matters.
A worker might finish an eight-hour shift and then spend the evening caring for an elderly parent.
Another may be trying to arrange hospital appointments around a rigid shift pattern.
Someone caring for a disabled partner could repeatedly reduce their hours until household finances make the arrangement unsustainable.
These are circumstances that cannot always be solved by taking a single week away from work.
Britain’s hidden workforce challenge
There is therefore a bigger economic and workplace question behind these figures.
Britain needs experienced workers.
If large numbers of people who want to remain economically active are instead leaving employment because work and caring cannot coexist, employers lose experience while workers lose income and career opportunities.
The government’s own review explicitly includes consideration of measures that could help unpaid carers enter, remain in and progress in the workplace.
There is also a connection with the wider employment market. The Workers Union recently reported on signs of recovery in the UK jobs market and the growth of flexible and temporary employment, noting that greater flexibility can provide opportunities for people managing family and caring commitments.
But flexibility must work in practice.
For a worker balancing employment with caring for someone who depends on them, the difference between a manageable working arrangement and an inflexible one could ultimately determine whether they remain part of the UK workforce.
What happens next for UK working carers?
Attention will now turn to the outcome of the government’s review.
Its published timetable anticipates a final report, findings and roadmap between autumn 2026 and winter 2026–27, meaning further developments could follow.
For now, workers should remember three important points.
Statutory carer’s leave already exists. It provides eligible employees with up to one week of unpaid leave every 12 months.
Flexible working may provide another route for people who need longer-term adjustments.
And although paid carer’s leave is being considered as part of the government’s wider review, it is not yet a statutory entitlement.
For The Workers Union, the wider issue is straightforward: people should not reach the end of their working lives prematurely simply because they do not understand what workplace options may be available to them.
With the number of working carers increasing, this is no longer a niche employment issue. It is becoming an increasingly significant challenge for UK workers, employers and the wider British workforce.
