Data from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health were used to study the order of events leading to informal caregiving and changes in labour force participation in mid-aged women, taking into account health and socioeconomic status. This analysis included 9857 women who responded to the third (2001) and fourth (2004) surveys and provided data for the caring and employment variables used. Caring was defined as providing care for an ill, frail or disabled person at least 7 h/wk. Between 2001 and 2004, the proportion of women caring increased from 12 to 14%.
