- An application to finally balance the mental stress? The Spanish government has developed a program to control the division of domestic chores within the household.
- The initiative, presented at a session of the United Nations Committee against Discrimination against Women, aims to highlight the imbalance faced by women in domestic work.
- Have we found the miracle solution to couples’ everyday problems? 20 Minutes takes stock with Alice Apostoly, co-founder of the Gender Institute in Geopolitics.
Which couple hasn’t had an argument over an incorrectly positioned machine or dishes lying around? Spoilers: none. Toilets to scrub, a meal to cook, the mop to sweep… So many thankless domestic chores that women in heterosexual couples often do. Faced with this relentless observation, which always weighs a little more on the mental burden, Spain is looking for a solution: a mobile application in charge of restoring balance to household chores. Can this initiative work in France? Can such tools close this gap? Are there prejudices? 20 Minutes takes stock of the case involving Alice Apostoly, co-founder of the Gender Institute in Geopolitics.
Can the app be available in France?
Spain, a pioneer in dealing with gender inequalities, has a simple concept. “It’s an application that will make it possible to count the time that everyone invests in domestic chores,” summarizes Angela Rodriguez, Spain’s Secretary of State for Equality, at the France Inter microphone. In concrete terms, the application works on the same model as Tricount, a program that allows expenses to be shared between several people.
Alice Apostoly thinks the initiative is interesting, but doesn’t see it as a miracle solution. “We need an ambitious political program to get closer to a fair division of tasks,” she argues. Because the gap that needs to be closed is still large in France. The INSEE ‘Time Use’ survey also calculated that ‘women spend 10 hours and 15 minutes more on household chores than men’.
A tool that can reduce gender inequality?
According to a study by TaskRabbit and YouGov (2021), almost seven out of ten French people have already stopped talking to each other because of an argument related to housework. Worse still, 2% of those surveyed even state that they are getting divorced because of it. Given this observation, “the value of this application will lie primarily in the data it can highlight.” This will be another good source of documentation that can drive advocacy and awareness work for feminist movements,” predicts Alice Apostoly.
The numbers highlight the magnitude of the gap that needs to be bridged to achieve gender equality. According to a study by the National Institute of Statistics in Spain, 45.9% of women surveyed say they do most of their household chores at home, compared to just 14.9% of men. In France, according to INSEE, “two-thirds of domestic tasks are done by women”. “It affects their career, their mental health, their daily life, their ability to have hobbies and time for themselves,” recalls our specialist, who insists on one point: “For a couple with one child, it gets worse Disparity of duties drastic.” after the arrival of the firstborn. We need equal parental leave regulations for both parents, better access to childcare, a reduction in working hours are concrete solutions, the education of the children.”
Does the initiative have prejudices?
“We all know that person who says to us, ‘I’ll take care of the kitchen tidying.’ Except that cleaning up the kitchen can take twenty minutes, but for that someone else had to buy a sponge, a washing-up liquid. According to surveys, this psychological burden almost always affects women. With Angela Rodriguez, the observation is clear. For the Spanish politician, the men have to play along in order not to ruin the system. “The effectiveness of the device will depend on the goodwill of the couples using it,” comments our expert. Many phenomena are documented, including strategic incompetence or lack of initiative (to accomplish difficult tasks). »
Another concern: who is responsible for filling out the information in the application on a daily basis? If misused, the application could lead to an additional burden for the woman. A long-term solution: education from an early age. “For example, women are less likely to benefit from having their own workspace (25% vs. 39% of men) at home. So it is not the time spent at home, it is not the workload, but cognitive biases and ingrained norms that explain this gap. There is a possibility that the man will prioritize his work and the woman will be expected to prioritize her home. »