Most couples still stick to gendered chores despite believing it is outdated, finds survey

Research has found that women still ‘bear the brunt’ of washing up and laundry

Britons stick to gendered chores despite thinking it is outdated. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Nearly three quarters of women in the UK feel they bear the brunt of household chores, compared to just 35 per cent of men, new research has found.

Over half of Britons (six in 10) say they and their partner still have set household chores despite most couples (74 per cent) thinking gendered jobs are outdated, according to the survey of 2,000 people.

The results, which were collated by appliance manufacturer Indesit, showed that men are more likely to take the bins out or cut the grass, while women usually take charge of the washing up and laundry.

It follows a 2019 study which found that “gender norms remain strong” when it comes to household chores.

The analysis, which was conducted by University College London and published in the journal Work, Employment and Society, discovered that women do approximately 16 hours of household chores every week, while men do closer to six.

During the first Covid-19 lockdown, researchers at London School of Economics examined how the pandemic had affected these traditionally gendered chores.

They reported that both men and women carried out more household chores while they were on furlough or working from home.

However, the research also showed that this did nothing to change the gendered division of domestic chores, saying that in “virtually all scenarios the woman contributed the greater share of domestic labour”.

Further research by children’s charity Theirworld suggested that girls and young women did the majority of household chores during the pandemic, leaving them less time to focus on their education.

Sarah Brown, the chair of Theirworld, said at the time: “There are reports that women’s equality could be pushed back by up to 10 years by the pandemic and this is a stark reminder that the fight for gender equality is ongoing.”