UK survey: two-thirds of women still do more than their fair share of household chores
Welcome to the bi-weekly update (#204) where we dive deeper into key topics, themes or issues specific to women and their lived experience.
According to The British Social Attitudes Survey (BSA), more than three-quarters of respondents said that domestic labour should be split - but some two-thirds of women still do more than their fair share of household chores.
However we are slowly seeing a change in societal attitudes.
Whilst in the 1980s, 48% agreed with the statement "a man's job is to earn money and a woman's to look after the home”. This year, a mere 9% agreed - and 32% of men questioned admitted they do less around the house than they should.
Moreover, female employment for women between the age of 16 and 64 has also risen from 54% in 1983 to now 72%.
Compare some of the stats to mainland Europe. According to European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE):
Around 91% of women with children spend at least an hour each day on housework - and that figure drops to 30% among men with children.
The majority of unequal division of labour is down to entrenched gender roles passed from mothers to daughters and fathers to sons.
Highly skilled employed women frequently outsource household chores to cut their time on housework whereas men appear to be loath to spend money on tasks they can apparently do themselves.
And whilst over the last decade countries like France and Luxembourg have seen a significant rise in equality in the home, countries such as the Czech Republic, Hungary and Bulgaria have reversed in their attitudes.
Around Europe, statistics show that, on average, 79% of women (with or without children) undertake household chores and cook on a daily basis, compared to just 34% of men.
Whilst there are many reasons for the variation in attitudes in countries towards gender equality in the home, religion seems to be a strong indicator of entrenched gender norms.
The Purse Ltd. Copyright 2023 & All Rights Reserved.
The Purse provides content for informational purposes only, we do not provide investment advice. Please do your own research or speak to a financial adviser.