Women Today Perform Only Half as Much Household Work Than Women 30 Years Ago

Women have been stalwarts when it comes to housework, but a new study has crushed the notion by revealing that modern mums actually do just four hours housework a week – half the time they did 30 years ago.

The survey, commissioned by Pot Noodle, found that longer office hours, hectic social lives and men doing their fair share, has led to women spending less time doing household chores.

Researchers quizzed 1,000 mums who gave birth in the 1970s and 1,000 who gave birth in the last 10 years to compare their status and outlooks.

They revealed the changing face of modern motherhood by discovering that modern mothers are now more likely to be unmarried, older and less inclined to give up work and become full-time mums.

The figures showed that this year only 29 per cent of UK mothers gave up work when they had their first child compared with 53 per cent who quit their jobs back in 1977.

The poll also showed that almost half of mums are ditching the traditional image of waiting to have children after getting married, with 45 per cent having their first baby before tying the knot, as compared to 82 per cent 30 years ago.

Parents are also getting older as the poll revealed that the average age for having their first child in 1977 was 23, while presently it has reached 30.

The researchers found that 56 per cent of people today waited until they consider themselves financially stable to start a family, a stark contrast to 45 per cent parents in 1977.

Denise Tyler, who runs the website mother@work which gives tips and advice to working mums, said that modern mothers faced different pressures to those 30 years ago.

"I don't think women are necessarily doing less housework, we now have much better cleaning products and machines to make everything more speedy. Women are learning not to sweat the small stuff. It's not as important today to get your carpets gleaning as it is to spending time with your children,” the Daily Mail quoted Tyler, as saying.

"I think we are just as houseproud as we spend so much on home improvements, I just think our priorities have changed. Despite men taking on more responsibility in the home, it's still women who take on the primary care role. Although the traditional 1950s mum doesn't exist anymore, women still face the same difficulties, they just solve them in different ways,” she added.

Source-ANI
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