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Subscribe to RSSWhat would you value more? Mom cooking dinner for the family, or Dad killing a spider in Junior’s room?
While women are still dealing with the gender wage gap at work, when it comes to the unpaid work moms do at home, their imaginary paychecks would be bigger than those of their husbands.
As Father’s Day approaches this weekend, it’s time to take stock of what dads do for their families beyond just bringing home a paycheck. Alas, the household chores they tend to do aren't worth as much as the sweat equity moms put in at home year round, according to two recent reports.
Insure.com calculated what they deemed to be daddy duties, including things such as barbecuing, killing bugs and mowing the lawn. The study found the domestic tasks would total about $20,248 a year if they were paid work. That compared to $60,182 annually for moms for doing things such as cooking, cleaning and nursing wounds. The value of the work was based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics for how much similar jobs out in the real work world would pay.
Another study by Salary.com found that the value of what working dads do at home is actually rising. The company looked at online responses from nearly 3,000 dads who reported on the number of hours they put into tasks at home, including everything from cooking to driving kids around, and found the value of what the dads did jumped to $36,757 this year from $33,858 the previous year. A previous study of work done by working moms found what the moms do at home is valued at $66,979, compared to $63,471 in 2011.
The dads in Salary.com’s sampling were doing more laundry this year, about 1.4 hours, compared to 1.2 hours in 2011; but they cut back on their kitchen time, from 2.7 hours to 2.2 hours.
Women are still the ones doing the heavy lifting at home, said Nancy Folbre, a professor in the Department of Economics at the University of Massachusetts. But she cautioned against giving this type of data on what dads do too much credence.
“They underestimate both what mothers and fathers do,” she noted.
Indeed, Emmet Pierce, a spokesman of Insure.com, said his firm's research was not a scientific study but rather a “lighthearted view of fatherhood. It’s not that every dad conforms to this, but it gives a broad view of what fathers do.”
Dads are doing more around the house, but a shift from that 1950s mentality has been slow.
A study by the Bureau of Labor Statistics released last year found: “On an average day, 20 percent of men did housework — such as cleaning or doing laundry — compared with 49 percent of women. Forty-one percent of men did food preparation or cleanup, compared with 68 percent of women.” And a 2008 Gallup poll found that women are much more likely to do most of the household chores, while men are primarily taking care of the family cars and doing yardwork.
But traditional family roles are being questioned. A report released Monday by Boston College’s Center for Work & Family found that those dads who choose to stay at home with their kids made “a conscious choice and commitment to be home with their children to the benefit of their families, their wives’ careers, and their own personal fulfillment.” And the center reported 3.4 percent of at-home parents are dads today, compared to 1.7 percent 10 years ago.
“Nearly all fathers are increasingly likely to experience active caregiving, and the result will require employers to adapt their thinking and their actions regarding who needs support to do so adequately,” said Brad Harrington, author of the study and executive director of the Center for Work & Family. “This is not simply a women’s issue.”
Folbre believes that gender responsibilities as they relate to household work are being “renegotiated” but there’s still some resistance and inertia when it comes to change. “We still have a really long way to go,” she added.
Here's a rundown on what working dads do at home and the value of their household tasks from Salary.com:
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This story isnt sexist??? What crap. Typical, vanilla, no facts, all crap USA media coverage. Gee, if I were to say, before Mother's Day, that "we all know" that Mom's dont do any hard work and therefore should not be paid much - that would likely get millions of posts about how "stupid" I am. However, call Dad's "worthless" before Father's Day and you get nothing. The liberal USA media actually is happy to post the story.
Middle class white males are the only group that can be insulted without cause for any apology. Insult a Black? Mexican? Asian? If you do, you get called the famous "-ophobic" or you are called a "hater". USA, our forefathers gave their lives to build this country so we can be worthless a**holes today. Nice.
yes, sexist.. but race and politics have nothing to do with it... you're reaching.
The race pertains the the second point - that white males can be bashed without regard . This entire story is an example of that. It is typical msnbc crap. They couldn't write a decent story if their life depended on it. Spelling errors, conveniently leaving off relevant facts from stories, ignoring stories about things that disprove their other stories - they are the propaganda machine that Obama makes full use of.
A quick google search of the author shows that she has a blog called "Career Diva" and website. It is all geared towards women, and I'll bet if we read some of her work probably very slanted against eveil men. Just by her bio pic I know why she is so anti-man- she never got asked to prom.
Insure.com did not win any points with their so-called research yielding their pseudo-statistics with a "lighthearted view of fatherhood". Neither did Eve Tahmincioglu with this irritatingly sexist article.
Assuming the division of labor, I know many women who proudly proclaim they can't (and don't) cook, but no men who will admit to being stupid about tools. I raised my sons alone and consider myself the luckiest person alive; I have yet to meet a single mom with that attitude. This article is right out of a women's magazine of the 1970s... it has no bearing on today's single parent, gay parents, working moms, extended families. It is blatantly sexist and insulting.
If the shoe fits, wear it!!!!!!!
Women have always been more valuable and done more in the home than men. Just ask my wife and her friends, they'll have no problem telling you;-)
Why would anyone choose to write this hateful and sexist open letter to all the men who read msnbc, and why would msnbc choose to print this nastiness? At the end of the article the author admits that the research on which it is based is crap, and yet there it is on the front page – a big middle finger pointed at half of their readers. The end of the article tries to make it sound all tongue-in-cheek, but it's not; if the genders were reversed, it would never have made it past the editors.
The article is not cute and it's not funny. We need to stop writing disparaging things about each other. Men and women work their butts off trying to pay the bills, raise happy and healthy children, and contribute positively to society. When we are lucky we get to do it as part of a supportive team (sometimes a man and a woman, sometimes two men, and sometimes two women). Why would msnbc feel the need to publish an article that is obviously intended to be divisive?
The article is not news, and it's not human interest. It is hate disguised as humor, and I can only assume it was published to generate more readers. Because of this, I will be getting my news from other sources for at least the rest of the week, as this is the only way I can express my disgust.
Boy does this article make me feel bad! I am a 50 year old woman with a professional career.. My husband is 53. He does not cook, clean, do laundry, or deal with our finances. We live in a condo so there is no yardwork whatsoever. He is not mechanical so he cannot fix anything around the house when it breaks. He also will not call a repairman, I have to do it. He does have a full time job but that is it. We make virtually the same salary per year. Where do you find men that have any use around the house?? This is my second marriage(the first man was also useless). Almost every night I am up folding laundry or doing some other chore while he is in bed watching the history channel. I am really down on the male race!!!!!!!
Maybe he is the best you deserve?
Obviously you did not learn anything from your first marriage. Who's fault is that?
He's obviously not smart if he is married to you.
I'm divorced and the time I spend doing "his" chores are way less time than I spend doing the stuff I've been doing all my adult life...cooking, cleaning, laundry, grocery shopping, helping with the kid's school projects and meeting with teachers, taking them to the doctor/dentist, etc. Of course all in addition to a full time job. I spend maybe ten minutes a week on pool maintenance and three hours every two weeks doing (large) yard work but that's only in the summer. The cars have their oil changed, tires rotated/changed, maintenance done at the auto shop like always. Spiders? The exterminator comes every two months.
I needed to meet up with one of these guys who do more also!
This article is really pretty interesting for a number of reasons:
1. Good illustration of deflation in action
2. Good demonstration of MSNBC's lack of tact
3. More evidence that MSNBC doesn't do real journalism because it completely missed the real message that would have been far more valuable to the sheeple.
Wake up America and start reading real news instead of the garbage from MSNBC.
How refreshing to read some women taking up for us dads! gees, maried 25 years here with 2 grown children, I cook, clean up, yard work, repairs and maintenance on all the cars, IT director, CFO, negotiate the insurance, pay the bills, buy groceries, take dog out, my wife does all the cleaning including dishes which is what she prefers. she laughs at the way I destroy the kitchen but loves the meals. Our kids come to me for everything...I clean the pool, maintain the pool, and whether politically correct or now, am the man of the house but not in the sense that my father was. He didn't know where the kitchen was in the house and my mother appreciated the fact that the kitchen was her department. don't get me started on role differences and how much real men today that are fathers and devoted husbands due for their family compared to our parents generation. I wouldn't have it any other way and for some one to place a price tage on love and affection tells us exactly how low our media society has dropped. Most are just jelous that have not found true harmony in a wonderful relationship of man, wife and gifts from God called children and sharing life together.
This is sexiest, i garuntee it doesnt account for us doing house hold work plus remodeling. We do much mroe than this article says we do, we work and do chores around the house. Old trynd might have been the woman cleans the house but in my generation that has changed to a mutual set of chores you do everyday. Ask a happily married couple who does most the work, i garuntee itll be mutual
Gee, another bash the man lib....so shocking
Why does media think that women always need to be patronized, I mean come on are there really women out there so pathetic that they need to hear how much better they are than men even on fathers day.
Sorry Eve, but if you are drawing comparisons between the work place and the home there are a few comparative occupations that were left off the list. These obligations and responsibilities tend to fall on the male counterpart (at least in my household) :
police, military, fire, emergency services, financial consulting, family planning, legal, insurance, tax preparation, medical, dental, veterinary, waste management, travel agent, real estate agent and transportation.
What a crock. You mean to tell me that women who work outside the home still do all the things that women who are stay at home moms do? I know I share responsibilities with my wife and she only has a part time job. I am a better cook that is for sure. I do the same housework she does and hold down a fulltime job and do volunteer work. We have been married 30 years and the entire 30 years, I know what I have done with the house, kids, etc. No afternoon naps in my daily routine which is 7 days a week. Yes folks, I work a lot of OT, at times, 20 days in a row.
I am also the financial officer of the home, I am the CEO and President , accountant, as I have to make all the decisions when it comes to home repairs, contacting contractors, paying bills, etc. What am I worth? A whole lot more that what is being said here. If we have a few bucks left over, she wants to spend, spend spend.
I grew up in a home where my dad worked his butt off to provide for the family and to compensate for my mom staying at home with us. He worked very hard and very long hours. Mom she worked hard around the house. Everyone has their duties and all are important and the lack of any of them would make things tough...but this doesn't discount what Dad does...I'm grown and married and my father still goes out of his way to look out for us...even though it's very easily out of his scope of responsibility.
I am sorry, but I find this article OFFENSIVE! It's just another in an ongoing assault of the left again men and boys! While I happen to agree that my lovely bride of 21 years is a WONDERFUL mother, to put a price on all she does is also offensive! That said, since I work 40+ hours a week outside of the house plus my daily commute so our family can do all we do, a comparison of what I do at home vs. my wife is rather silly also... as NATURALLY she does more, if for no other reason than the fact she is home about 60 hours more a week while I am at work! Is she supposed to feel better with this comparison of it it indended to belittle me and all working and Participating dads? DUMB, DUMB, DUMB!!
For more insight into this issue, I strongly suggest all read "The War Against Boys" by Christine Hoff Sommers. MSN should issue an apology for this crap!
When will men break through the "Glass Ceiling" around the home?
This article is as worthless as Solyndra stock, and is pointless. Obviously the author Eve Tahmincioglu is a man hater.
Every home will be different, as every marriage & partnership is different. It is a negotiation of some sorts, ie: house cleaning vs. yard & home maintenance, cooking dinner vs laundry, etc etc. Hopefully there is a mutual agreement between both partners.
This article is the typical feminist "poison pill" present to all of their "Dads" for Fathers Day. Can't be happy with your own accomplishments? Then tear someone else down! You'd never see an article like this before Mother's Day!
The author of this crap is a die hard feminist...go figure.
Thanks for the Father's Day gift, Eve. Here's my 'Programming Tip of the Day' for you (and other VB.Net fans):
How to instantiate your author object:
Dim Wit As Author
As a family doctor I have a unique view of how families view "work in the home". With the economic problems ongoing in the economy, many men lost their jobs, and roles reversed. Often women where the primary income earners, and men did work in the home, childcare, cooking, etc. Sometimes this new reality worked out, sometimes not. In cases where the role reversals in a family didn't work out, it was often frustration on the women's part that her husband wasn't working for such an extended period. In cases where the wife had a substantial income, I witnessed the wife would divorce her husband out of her unhapiness with the situation. The really ironic thing about this is she would would then have to divide her assets with her "chronically unemployed husband", would have to fight to maintain custody of her children (as the ex husband was the "primary caregiver"), and depending on the lenth of the marriage would be at substatial risk of having to provide alimony/ spousal support on an ongoing basis to her ex husband. After going through this, some women view the legal systems view of family law as incredibly unfair to them and become very bitter and depressed. The worst case scenario for them is the ex-husband gets the house and joint custody of the children, while she must continue to work ever harder not only to try to start a new life and get a new place, but also to support her ex-husband and the children. While I remain sympathetic and it does seem grossly unfair on many levels, when I talk to the ex-husband about the situation while he brings the children in for their immunizations/ coughs/ colds/ etc. he will complain to me that his ex wife didn't value his contribution to the family/ caregiving/ work in the home.
Wow...like they say: Payback is hell....
Where do all these neanderthal men live so contently relegated to menial domestic chores? No, seriously I want to move to this pleasant valley Sunday and idle away my free hours cutting grass and killing spiders. Please tell me where this mantopia exists in 2012? As a working husband and father of two I would love to afford the time to contemplate the fulfilling careers of bus driver, groundskeeper and cook. I waste far too much time worrying about the physical and financial security of my family, not to mention trivial diversions in investments, tax planning, retirement, insurance, real estate and transportation. The next next time a home invader kicks down our door I'm gonna tell him straight to his face "I'M TAKING THE NIGHT OFF MR. MAN!"
pretty sad when you can read the responses, not the article and know EXACTLY what this article says - originality please. my girlfriend and I share a home with my 2 kids and we BOTH work our a**es off to make sure its the best it can be for everyone. we don't worry about whether folding shirt carries more merit that mowing the lawn. it's give and take ALWAYS. if I don't make money to keep the lights on and buy groceries, she can't cook. If she doesn't do laundry, I look like a bum. etc., etc. and thousand times etc.! for God's sake when did this become an issue? I don't remember my parents ever worrying about this kind of nonsense. they both knew that no matter what, without the other, neither of them were worth nearly as much. I'm lucky to have found that same belief in someone. If the Eve's of the world want to re-hash the same menusha year after year to make the un-appreciated feel better then fine. I will continue to tell my better half how I appreciate all she does with the biggest of emphasis in the most miniscule moments. I will keep my head up & my mouth shut except when that lawn is mowed and those hedges are trimmed and the sidwalk is blown off and that ice cold beer is right at my lips.....cheers everyone.
blah
I do yard work, landscaping, pool cleaning/repair, home repair, painting, car cleaning/repair, most of the cooking, and the dishes are split 50/50. I do all the IT, pay the bills, do the taxes, plan the vacations. She does some of the cleaning (we have cleaners come in once a month), laundry, and whatever care her 19-year-old son requires. I work a full-time job that requires occasional night and weekend work, and I make 40% more money than she does at her job, which requires no night and weekend work.
My yearly work around the house would cost multiple tens of thousands to get done if we paid for it..
Make me wonder which men replied to the survey? I DON'T HAVE TIME FOR SURVEYS.
And spiders don't deserve killing - they are beneficial. I capture them and let them go outside.
I switched my homepage to MSN from Yahoo! because I kept seeing articles like this. I guess they are everywhere.
Feminism has flooded the media via universities and their women's studies departments. This isn't just a sexist article by a sexist writer, but it was given the green by a sexist editor and both were hired by a sexist publisher.
I could keep going because there are so many things wrong with this article. Instead I will just say that, guys, you don't have to justify your "fatherly duties" to this ignorance.
delete
So the ugly truth finally emerges: Dad's only get 77 cents for every dollar mom's earn in the home.
Well noted gramps. Funny that the apples-to-oranges pay gap comparison is ignored by liberals in the outside employment world with "pay equality" articles but highlighted in this article concerning the domestic arena. These articles should at least be consistent in their methodology. If so, the author would be howling for equal pay for occasional spider killing by men and daily child psychology by women.