This article examines to what extent the presence or absence, adequacy or inadequacy of formal services impacts on the work trajectory of caregivers to elderly relatives. The article is based on a qualitative study with 20 employed caregivers' whose elderly relatives received homecare services from one of two Montreal CLSCs: Results reveal the key role played by formal services in caregivers' attempts to juggle caregiving demands with those of their employment. They illustrate how the presence or the insufficiency of these services, their adequacy or inadequacy, combined with the other accommodations which caregivers put into place, can be determinants in caregivers' decisions to continue working and in their capacity to function well in the work place.
