What do you understand by gender-based domestic division of labour? Is it undergoing a change in the wake of increasing participation of women in formal employment? Clarify your answer with illustrations.

Understanding Gender-Based Domestic Division of Labour

The gender-based domestic division of labour is a pervasive social phenomenon where household responsibilities are inequitably distributed along gender lines. This division assigns a disproportionate share of unpaid work, such as cooking, cleaning, childcare, eldercare, and household management, to women. Sociologically, this can be understood through several perspectives:

• Talcott Parsons' Structural Functionalism: Parsons described traditional family roles as complementary, with men performing 'instrumental' roles (breadwinning) and women performing 'expressive' roles (nurturing and household management). This theory, however, has been critiqued for reinforcing gender stereotypes and ignoring power imbalances.
• Feminist Critique: Scholars like Ann Oakley and Arlie Hochschild argue that this division is a social construct designed to maintain patriarchal control and institutionalize women's economic dependence. Hochschild famously coined the term "second shift" to describe the phenomenon where women, after completing a full day of paid work, return home to undertake the bulk of domestic responsibilities.
• Historical Context: In pre-industrial societies, production and reproduction were integrated within the household. Industrialisation separated the workplace from the home, leading men into waged employment and largely confining women to unpaid domestic work, thereby solidifying the modern gendered division of labour.

Changes in the Wake of Increasing Participation of Women in Formal Employment

The increasing participation of women in formal employment globally and in India has undeniably brought about shifts, but the fundamental structure of gender-based domestic division of labour has proven to be remarkably resilient. While some changes are observed, a complete transformation remains elusive.

Evidence of Gradual Change:

• Increased Female Labour Force Participation (FLFP): India's female labour force participation rate has shown some growth, though it remains lower than global averages. As more women enter professions like IT, healthcare, and services, there's a growing necessity for dual-earner households to manage domestic tasks differently.
• Marginal Increase in Male Involvement: In some urban, educated dual-earner households, there is a marginal increase in male involvement, particularly in childcare and occasional household chores. For instance, husbands might help with weekend grocery shopping or playing with children.
• Outsourcing of Domestic Work: Affluent families often outsource domestic work to paid help, which can alleviate the physical burden on women, though it often doesn't challenge the underlying gendered assumptions about who "manages" the household. This leads to what is sometimes called the "feminisation of domestic service," where one woman's unpaid labour is replaced by another woman's paid, often undervalued, labour.
• Egalitarian Attitudes (Emerging): A Pew Research Center study (2022) revealed that 62% of Indians believe both men and women should be responsible for childcare, and 54% for earning money. However, these egalitarian views coexist with strong traditional norms.

Persistence of Gendered Division of Labour: The "Double Burden"

Despite increased formal employment, women continue to shoulder a disproportionate share of domestic work, leading to the "double burden" or "second shift."

• Time Use Survey (TUS) 2019, India: This landmark survey provided crucial data on the disparity.
  • Indian women spend an average of 4.5 hours daily on unpaid household and caregiving tasks, compared to just 1.5 hours for men.
  • Women (15-59 years) in urban areas spend 47% of their waking hours, and women in rural areas 43%, in unpaid care work; for men, it is 5%.
  • Females spend 29.1 times more time on food preparation and management, 11.9 times on cleaning and maintenance, and 3 times on childcare than males.
• Cultural Norms and Expectations: Deeply rooted patriarchal mindsets still perceive household work as primarily a woman's responsibility. Men's participation is often seen as "helping" rather than an equal sharing of duties. Even in families where young couples express egalitarian views, women often end up doing most of the care work.
• Societal and Structural Support Deficiencies: The lack of affordable childcare, elderly care services, and flexible work arrangements exacerbates the problem, forcing women to take on more unpaid work.

Illustrations:

1. The Software Engineer's "Second Shift": A female software engineer in Bengaluru works a demanding 10-hour day. Upon returning home, she is still primarily responsible for preparing dinner, overseeing her children's homework, and planning household finances, while her husband, who also works full-time, may engage in leisure activities or minimal domestic involvement. Her entry into formal employment has not significantly reduced her domestic workload.
2. The Working Mother in a Nuclear Family: In a nuclear family in Delhi where both parents are employed, the mother often manages all logistical aspects related to childcare, such as coordinating school pick-ups, doctor appointments, and children's extra-curricular activities, alongside her professional responsibilities. The father might occasionally drop children off at school but rarely takes on the primary organisational and emotional labour.
3. Outsourcing and Management Burden: An upper-middle-class working woman in Mumbai employs a domestic helper for cooking and cleaning. However, she retains the role of "household manager"—supervising the helper, planning meals, managing budgets, and coordinating all household schedules. This illustrates that while physical labour is outsourced, the mental and emotional load of domestic work often remains with the woman.