Breadwinner Wives in 44 Per Cent of Homes

Some 44 per cent of women in Britain now earn at least the same amount as their husbands and partners, according to research carried out on behalf of the Government. Almost one-fifth (19 per cent) take home more than their partners, a five-fold increase over the past 40 years. The role reversal has been driven by improved education levels among women and changing social norms. Women aged 20-34 are now more likely to have a degree than men. Most career women, for example, no longer expect to be kept by their boyfriends while more men are now willing to run the household instead of going out to work.

According to Jacqueline Scott, Professor of Sociology at Cambridge University, “There has been a shift in gender roles. More women are now becoming doctors, for example, and opportunities in the workplace are opening up. Both men and women should be contributing to the family income.” The research surveyed up to 25,000 UK households over the past four decades, covering both married and unmarried couples. In 1968-69, only four per cent of women aged 16-60 (520,000) earned more than their partners. In 2006-07, the last year for which figures are available, the proportion had risen to 19 per cent (2.7 million women). A further 3.5 million women of working age (25 per cent) earned the same as their husbands or partners. Separate research at Essex University, has found that men are no doing almost twice as much housework as in 1961.

The article concludes, however, that despite the increasing influence of women in the workplace, their pay still remains below that of men and continues to fall further behind from the birth of their first baby until their children have left home.

Source: The Sunday Times, 31st January 2010