LEVELING OUT

Women Still Do More Housework Even When They Earn as Much as Husbands

Women who make as much as their spouses still do two more hours of caregiving and 2.5 more hours of housework every week.

Married couples are earning more equally than ever, but women are still taking on a majority of housework, according to new data from Pew Research Center. Around 30 percent of opposite-sex marriages in the United States have close to equal earnings, meaning there is no primary breadwinner in the household. And over the last 50 years, the number of women earning more than their husbands shot from 5 percent to 16 percent. Despite this, women who earn about the same as their husbands still do two more hours of caregiving and 2.5 more hours of housework than their husbands every week. Men spend nearly 3.5 more hours every week than their wives on leisure activities such as watching TV or playing video games, according to the study. Researchers say these ever-changing earnings trends cause many couples to have to reevaluate their relationship roles.