Is It Fair That Women Do More Housework Than Men?

By: Brie Cadman (Little_personView Profile)

A recent Gallup poll found that, despite all our lip service to equality of the sexes, when it comes to the division of household labor, women continue to do the bulk of it. Men are primarily responsible for only two chores, usually yard work, car care, or investments, while women are primarily responsible for six, including laundry, decorating, cooking, and taking care of the kids. Is this true in your household? Is folding tees, cleaning, and making dinner a fair swap for mowing the lawn?

Photo courtesy of now.org.

It is completely unfair and all too common. However I have a gem of a boyfriend who does more than his share around the house. Better get to those dishes now...
04.27.2008 Report
None of my wives or live-ins were good cooks or house cleaners. That wasn't the reason I was interested in them!
No it is not fair. What is worse is when you are with someone who agrees to help out and after a few years, slides backwards and stops. Don't need to feel like a maid in my own home!
It's really not fair if one person is carrying more of the burden than another but don't tell my husband I said that because the the division of labor in my house is not exactly equal. My husband cooks, he does the grocery shopping, he takes out the garbage, he washes the floors, he washes the dishes, he makes sure we don't run out of stuff, he makes the lunches, he cleans the catbox, and so on and so on! I do the laundry and the beds and the less pressing stuff stuff like vacuuming, polishing, window washing, decorating, etc. Do I feel guilty? no. He likes managing the household and he's good at it. I know many women in a similar set up or at the very least dividing chores equally--I'm kind of surprised by this poll.
04.23.2008 Report
Unfair. I was a bachelor for a long time, and, while I am now married and split the chores with my wife, the situation for over a decade was that if I didn't do 'em they didn't get done. However, I do the cleaning when I think the cleaning needs to be done, whether it's the dishes, the bathroom, the laundry, or whatever; I do NOT do them on a time schedule. And my tolerance for dirt is higher than my wife's.

While there are men who think that marriage is partly a way to gain a housekeeper without paying directly by the week, most men will do the chores when men think they need to be done. In my experience (which is, of course, limited), the people who complain about men not doing chores want us to do them on someone's schedule other than our own. You want us to help? Fine. Most of us will be happy to do so when we think that the chore needs doing.
04.23.2008 Report
I think it depend on your living situation. While I have the skills and training to earn 18 an hour, I choose to be a housewife.(I do have an income from the national guard but 250 a month for a weekend of work is hardly a contribution to finances) So I think that is is perfectly fair for my husband's only chores to be taking out the trash and fixing various things around the house.
04.22.2008 Report
It should be balanced, and if the woman is pulling more weight with housework, the man should make up the difference with other types of tasks/chores.
04.22.2008 Report
True. Not fair. Is the situation going to change? Probably not (at least while I'm alive). Women are also culpable in this situation; we take on far too much responsibility and accept almost any household task that needs to be done.
04.21.2008 Report
Heck no - women should not do more than men around the house. The division of labor is something we rage against in my house (to my husband's advantage, for sure). The only time I wasn't responsible for cutting grass, upkeep of the yard, etc., was when I was so pregnant that it would have been embarrassing for all of us. I take out all of the trash, and haul the trashcan and recycling to the street on trash day. I pay the bills and .... wait, maybe I am doing way too much!
First published April 2008
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http://www.divinecaroline.com/article/22360/48356-fair-do-housework-men-