Women’s Unpaid Domestic Labour: Implications for Household Decision-Making in Dir, Pakistan
Abstract
Women in Upper Dir, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, are generally perceived as caregivers, often performing domestic unpaid labour. In contrast, men are discerned to perform paid labour outside the home. The complex intersection of women’s unpaid domestic and men’s paid labour outside the house with gender roles in the family influences women's household decision-making. This study used a Marxist feminist framework to analyze what implications women’s unpaid domestic labour carries for household decision-making. We collected the data while conducting 19 in-depth interviews with married women. The findings reveal that women’s unpaid domestic labour, such as cleaning the house, cooking the meals, washing dishes, cleaning and pressing the clothes, and caring for the children, influences women’s role in household decision-making, for instance, decisions about children’s health care and education, reproduction and women’s health care, daily and major household purchases, and the decision about visiting relatives and attending social events. To ensure gender equality in the family, understanding the role of women’s unpaid labour in family relations, especially in decision-making, is necessary.
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