'Practice what you preach': Even today, women continue to shoulder the burden of housework - Survey

It is the age of equality. Women work, so do men;Women take care of the house, so do men... or do they?

A recent British Social Attitudes (BSA) survey has revealed that while the attitude surrounding stereotypical gender roles like housework have changed, the reality, to a large extent, hasn't.

Practice what you preach

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The annual survey of public view in Britain as per BBC news revealed that over three-quarters of the 6,638 respondents say that domestic labour should be split.

Despite that, two-thirds accepted that women continue to do more than their fair share of washing and ironing around the house. A large majority also acknowledged that the women still do most of the cooking and cleaning.

This is in spite of a radical shift in ideas on gender roles.

In the mid-1980s, almost half the survey respondents, or 48 per cent, had agreed with the statement "a man's job is to earn money and a woman's to look after the home."

This year, only nine per cent said they agree to this. Yet, 63 per cent of the female respondents said that they did more than their fair share of work around the house.

The 'second shift'

Social scientists call this phenomenon the "second shift," where women not only continue to take care of domestic and childcare duties but also join the labour market.

In 1983, around half the survey respondents felt that household income is the responsibility of both the genders. In 2023, about 70 per cent, both men and women think that the two genders should contribute equally.

As per BBC, in 1983, when BSA started conducting the survey, the female employment rate was around 54 per cent for women between the ages 16 and 64 years. This year, this number has risen to 72 per cent, with the participation of mothers at a high.

Comparatively, in 1983, 78 per cent of men between 16 and 64 years had a paid job. Today, this figure has risen by mere one point and stands at 79 per cent.

However, as per the study authors, "there remains a chasm between attitudes and practice, with women continuing to take on more domestic labour relative to men."

This, as per the authors, is reinforced by both public policy and workplace norms, and that the UK is a "long way" from achieving "a complete gender-role revolution in the household."