For many people, a fair division of household chores is a very important element of building a life together. In 2018, it published a report entitled “Women and men at home”. The conclusions were disturbing. A survey conducted by CBOS showed that in most households, women are responsible for doing housework.
Division of duties at home. How do couples in Poland cope with it?
“In most households, women are solely responsible for doing laundry (82%) and ironing (81%). The division of duties in this area has not changed significantly over time, as is the case with preparing meals, which in almost two thirds of households are performed exclusively by women (65%). Cleaning and thorough tidying up more often than 5 years ago fall solely on the shoulders of women (61% and 57%, respectively, an increase of 3 percentage points)” – indicated CBOS researchers. “A more egalitarian division between women and men concerns everyday shopping and taking out the trash. In half of households, there are no people permanently involved in these activities (51% and 50%, respectively). Also, handling official matters in 38% is done jointly or sometimes by a woman and sometimes by a man” – we could read in the 2018 report.
“She doesn’t help, she just takes care of the house, just like me”
We decided to ask our readers about the division of household chores. Marlena is 39 years old, has a husband and two children. She lives – as she emphasizes – in a “partnership model”. “Of course, we have arguments, but generally my husband and I understand each other very well. We both work professionally and we both take care of the house to an equal extent. My husband himself emphasizes that he hates the statement that he ‘helps me’ around the house or with the children. He doesn’t help, he just takes care of the house, just like me,” she writes.
When he sees a full basket of dirty laundry, he doesn’t wait for me to sort it out. He puts the laundry in himself. And I do the same, for example, when I see an uncleaned litter box – I just clean it. This way we maintain relative order and avoid arguments. That’s all. You don’t have to write down plans, who cleans when, etc. It’s enough if both people care about order.
– our reader notes.
How do Poles share responsibilities? ‘I can ask for a week to put in the dishwasher’ (illustrative photo) Ingrid Balabanova / Shutterstock.com
“The kitchen after his cooking is a mess”
Kornelia, on the other hand, believes that in her marriage this division is not as it should be. “Although my husband claims that he takes care of the house as much as I do, it is actually incomparable” – she writes. “Okay, maybe he has his ‘moments’. For example, he comes home with an armful of groceries and says from the doorstep that he’s going to make spaghetti bolognese for the whole family today. It’s nice, but it ends with making food,” complains Kornelia. “The kitchen looks like a mess after he cooks. Most often, he doesn’t remember where everything is, and he puts things just anywhere. Later, the dishes can stand in the sink for hours because they ‘soak’. It’s the same with cleaning. When I finally ask him to vacuum the living room, he does it with great grace, but for example he will no longer move the couch or the carpet to vacuum where he cannot see it.. The simplest things are a problem. Or those damned dishes… I can spend a week begging for someone to put in a dishwasher. It’s like throwing peas at a wall. So I usually end up doing it myself, because I can’t stand to look at it anymore,” she confesses.
“Everything can be reconciled somehow”
Daria, 29, lives with her fiancé. She emphasizes that although at first a fair division of duties was a problem, they tried to talk about everything on an ongoing basis. “When we moved in together, Kamil, for example, didn’t know how to put on a load of laundry because his mother always did it for him. But he wanted to learn and it took him a minute. On the other hand, I never want to dust or vacuum – and he’s crazy about it and somehow we complement each other. Obviously, if one of us works longer hours, for example Kamil has a night shift, then I’ll take care of dinner for tomorrow and a few other things. We take turns. Everything can be reconciled somehow,” Daria concluded.
How to keep your home tidy? Kobieta.gazeta.pl
Source: Gazeta
Bruce is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment . He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
