Burnout, despair facing workers on front lines of poverty and homelessness in Canada

Those who work with people facing homelessness and food shortages say employees are carrying a massive emotional burden as demand for services soars beyond what their organizations can provide.

Warren Maddox, executive director at Fredericton Homeless Shelters, in New Brunswick, says staff are witnessing more desperation, more violence and more people in extreme states of crisis.

He says demand from staff on the organization's in-house mental health counsellor has increased and that it's harder to help employees see past what he described as "an unending chain of misery."

Tasha Lackman, executive director at the Depot Community Food Centre, in Montreal, says her group is being forced to make gut-wrenching decisions, including to reduce the amount of food clients get in their baskets.

She says demand at the food bank is on track to nearly double this year compared to last year, and that staff are working harder but seeing their efforts have less of an impact.

Lackman says it's unconscionable that charities are forced to bear the brunt of what she calls a "massive systemic social crisis."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 10, 2023.