In 2018, among the 308 million people aged 18 to 64 in the European Union just over one third (34%), or 106 million people, reported care responsibilities. These responsibilities involved caring for own or partner's children under 15 years of age (89 million people, or 29%), incapacitated relatives (13 million, 4%), or both children and incapacitated relatives (4 million, 1%). Caring for children includes having children in the household or taking care of children outside the household.

More women than men (37% of women compared with 32% of men) reported care responsibilities across all categories of care in 2018: care responsibility for own or partner's children (30% of women compared with 28% of men), for incapacitated relatives (5%; 3%), and both (2%; 1%).

These selected findings, issued by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, come from a special data collection from the 2018 European Labour Force Survey on reconciliation of work and family life.

In the EU, 27% of the employed persons aged 18 to 64 with childcare responsibilities adapted their work to facilitate childcare in 2018. Women were more affected than men with over twice the share of women reporting effects of childcare on their employment (39%) compared with men (17%).

Additionally at EU level in 2018, 28% of people with childcare responsibilities reported using childcare services for all children, with a higher share reported by the employed (31%) compared with the unemployed (19%) and inactive (14%). Correspondingly, 72% of people with childcare responsibilities reported not using childcare services for all or some of their children.

In 2018, Ireland recorded the highest share of people reporting childcare responsibilities, combined or not with care for incapacitated relatives (42% of total population aged 18 to 64), ahead of Sweden and Luxembourg (both 35%), Estonia and France (both 34%). In contrast, the lowest shares were recorded in Bulgaria (24%), followed by Germany (26%), Croatia, Greece and Austria (all 27%).

In two EU Member States, Hungary (60%) and Denmark (59%), more than half of the population with childcare responsibilities used childcare services for all children in 2018. They were followed by Latvia and Slovenia (both 48%), Luxembourg (44%) and Portugal (43%), Sweden (42%) and Lithuania (41%).

In contrast, a quarter or less of the population with childcare responsibilities used childcare services for all children in Malta (12%), Romania (16%), Spain (17%), the United Kingdom (18%), Croatia (20%), Ireland, Italy and Cyprus (all 22%).