More US women are in the workforce, but still do most of the household work
A new report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows what a lot of us already guessed (or knew!): women have a disproportionate share of the housework.
On an average day, 83 percent of women and 65 percent of men spent some time doing household activities such as housework, cooking, lawn care, or financial and other household management.
On the days that they did household activities, women spent an average of 2.6 hours on such activities, while men spent 2.1 hours.
On an average day, 19 percent of men did housework–such as cleaning or doing laundry–compared with 48 percent of women. Forty percent of men did food preparation or cleanup, compared with 66 percent of women.
Compare this to the increasing number of women who not only are in the workforce, but also the primary source of income for their families. ThinkProgress writes,
In the last 25 years, the number of working women has grown by 44.2 percent, while 59.4 percent of working-age women are currently in the labor force. Sixty percent of women are the primary or co-bread winner for their household.
I think this is a hint as to why The Atlantic’s “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All” went viral. Many feel (and possibly fear?) the strain working within home and out.
via ThinkProgress
