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A Chinese man was ordered to pay his wife 50,000 yuan (about $ 8,000) for years of unpaid housework in a landmark divorce case that has sparked a heated debate over the value of women’s unpaid housework.
It is the first such verdict issued by a Chinese court after the Civil Code entered into force this year. According to the code, the person who assumes more responsibilities in the care of children, the elderly and other domestic tasks in the home has the right for the first time to request compensation in a divorce case.
Wang, the wife, told the court that during five years of marriage she “took care of the child and handled the household chores, while (her husband) Chen did not worry about or participate in any other domestic matters besides going to work.”
The court ruled that Wang had had more domestic responsibilities and should receive 50,000 yuan ($ 7,700) plus sole custody of the children. The compensation is not part of the joint ownership shared by the couple.
A mother teaches her daughter how to prepare a meal in Qingdao city, north China’s Shandong province, March 24, 2020. / CFP
A mother teaches her daughter how to prepare a meal in Qingdao city, north China’s Shandong province, March 24, 2020. / CFP
Feng Miao, the judge in the case, said the amount of compensation “is based on the length of time of her marriage, the effort Wang put into housework, the husband’s income, and the local average cost of living.” .
Wang had originally requested 160,000 yuan as compensation.
The ruling sparked wide debate on the Weibo platform, similar to Twitter, with some applauding the verdict and others strongly disapproving of it.
“It’s reasonable. She is a stay at home mom and she definitely has more responsibilities at home. She didn’t go out to work and had no income. I think she should be compensated,” one comment read.
“She stays at home for the whole family. He goes out to work, also for the family. He works hard and his income is used not only for him but for the whole family. There is no point in compensating,” he read. other.
Another netizen suggested that “women should never be stay-at-home wives” because “when you get divorced, you’re left with nothing. 50,000 yuan in housework compensation sucks.”
Families plant rice seedlings in a picturesque location in Jieyang city, south China’s Guangdong province, April 12, 2020. / CFP
Families plant rice seedlings in a picturesque location in Jieyang city, south China’s Guangdong province, April 12, 2020. / CFP
Long Jun, associate professor at Tsinghua University, said the Civil Code provision aims to protect those who contribute a lot at home but are more vulnerable. In cases like Wang’s, one of the marriage partners often forgoes professional and educational development to support the family.
“After divorce, the one who spends more time at work can continue to earn money and enjoy their social resources as well as their jobs. But the one who stays at home for years will have a hard time returning to work,” Long said.
“So, in the Civil Code, except for the part that the person can get by dividing the shared property, new rules of law were added to provide adequate compensation to those people to guarantee their future life.”
Other legal experts say that the court ruling and the ensuing debate may raise people’s awareness and respect for the value of domestic work, which is often undervalued relative to other jobs.
According to data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Chinese women spend an average of 234 minutes (3.9 hours) on unpaid domestic work per day, while men spend 91 minutes (about 1 , 5 hours) to that job a day. .
Time spent in unpaid work includes routine housework, care for household members, child care, adult care, care for non-household members, volunteering, shopping, trips related to household activities and other activities unpaid.
