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Canberra Region Joint Organisation areaCommunity profile

Canberra Region

Unpaid domestic work

In Canberra Region 24% of the 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 Canberra Region 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
Canberra Region - Persons aged 15+ (Usual residence)20212016Change
Hours spent on unpaid domestic workNumber%New South Wales %Number%New South Wales %2016 to 2021
Did unpaid domestic work182,19171.966.5164,54371.267.7+17,648
Less than 5 hours48,13119.018.845,03619.522.3+3,095
Between 5 and 14 hours73,12028.926.563,06827.325.1+10,052
Between 15 and 29 hours35,93714.212.331,79913.811.3+4,138
30 hours or more25,0039.98.924,64010.79.0+363
Did no unpaid domestic work52,69720.826.841,72418.023.6+10,973
Not stated18,5537.36.624,97210.88.7-6,419
Total persons aged 15+253,441100.0100.0231,239100.0100.0+22,202
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 population in Canberra Region in 2021 compared to New South Wales shows that there was a higher proportion of persons who performed 15 hours or more of unpaid domestic work per week.

Overall, 24% of the population reported performing 15 hours or more of unpaid domestic work, compared with 21.2% for New South Wales.

The major differences between the share of the population performing unpaid domestic work in Canberra Region and New South Wales were:

  • A larger percentage of persons who did unpaid domestic work (total) (71.9% compared to 66.5%)
  • A larger percentage of persons who did between 5 and 14 hours of domestic work (28.9% compared to 26.5%)
  • A larger percentage of persons who did between 15 and 29 hours of domestic work (14.2% compared to 12.3%)
  • A smaller percentage of persons who did no unpaid domestic work (20.8% compared to 26.8%)

Emerging groups

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

  • Did unpaid domestic work (+17,648 persons)
  • Did no unpaid domestic work (+10,973 persons)
  • Between 5 and 14 hours (+10,052 persons)
  • Between 15 and 29 hours (+4,138 persons)

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