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AustraliaCommunity profile

Victoria

Unpaid domestic work

In Victoria 11% of the male population over 15 did more than 14 hours of housework each week in 2021.

There has been increased interest in identifying, acknowledging and valuing the unpaid work that supports home and community life. The changing amount of time spent on unpaid housework in different Household Types and, particularly the distribution of this work within the household, can indicate the changing roles of males, females and older children in society. The level of unpaid domestic work in Victoria may also be related to Household Income, as higher income households are able to outsource some of these tasks.

Q:

Derived from the Census question:

'In the last week did the person spend time doing unpaid domestic work for their household?'

Unpaid domestic work
Victoria - Males aged 15+ (Usual residence)20212016Change
Hours spent on unpaid domestic workNumber%Regional SA %Number%Regional SA %2016 to 2021
Did unpaid domestic work1,645,84263.365.11,502,16663.865.1+143,676
Less than 5 hours653,14925.123.5693,86229.524.6-40,713
Between 5 and 14 hours702,44627.026.8582,47524.725.9+119,971
Between 15 and 29 hours199,1607.79.5151,4636.49.1+47,697
30 hours or more91,0873.55.374,3663.25.5+16,721
Did no unpaid domestic work787,38130.326.0647,02627.523.9+140,355
Not stated167,0746.48.9204,3148.711.0-37,240
Total persons aged 15+2,600,297100.0100.02,353,506100.0100.0+246,791
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing 2016 and 2021. Compiled and presented by .id (informed decisions).
Please refer to specific data notes for more information

Dominant groups

Analysis of the unpaid domestic work performed by the male population in Victoria in 2021 compared to Regional SA shows that there was a lower proportion of males who performed 15 hours or more of unpaid domestic work per week.

Overall, 11% of the male population reported performing 15 hours or more of unpaid domestic work, compared with 14.8% for Regional SA.

The major differences between the share of the male population performing unpaid domestic work in Victoria and Regional SA were:

  • A larger percentage of males who did no unpaid domestic work (30.3% compared to 26.0%)
  • A smaller percentage of males who did between 15 and 29 hours of domestic work (7.7% compared to 9.5%)
  • A smaller percentage of males who did 30 hours or more of domestic work (3.5% compared to 5.3%)
  • A smaller percentage of males who did unpaid domestic work (total) (63.3% compared to 65.1%)

Emerging groups

The largest changes in the number of males performing unpaid domestic work in Victoria, between 2016 and 2021 were those who:

  • Did unpaid domestic work (+143,676 males)
  • Did no unpaid domestic work (+140,355 males)
  • Between 5 and 14 hours (+119,971 males)
  • Between 15 and 29 hours (+47,697 males)

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