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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To think the working parent should also contribute to housework

119 replies

Bowejangles · 24/08/2018 14:45

Just that really.

Young family of three, father works full time and mum looks after baby full time.

Father does zero housework whatsoever because he works, mum doesn't therefore thinks she can surely do it herself.

If she doesn't then it doesn't get done

What do you think?

OP posts:
PurpleCrazyHorse · 24/08/2018 18:05

I'm a SAHM and I do 100% of the laundry, shopping, meal planning, cleaning etc and most of the basic DIY. What gets done, gets done but DH knows if I haven't done it it's because I've been needed with the children (DD is 9yo and DS is 3yo). He doesn't complain if he has to iron his own shirts etc because I've not had chance to do it. He knows that I'm a stay at home mum not a stay at home housemaid or cleaner. The kids come first.

On the flip side, I do just ask DH if I need help with stuff though. So he'll do a tip run at the weekend (I've usually sorted it all ready to go unless it's his stuff) and he'll do (or help me with) larger jobs like putting up shelves.

I guess the difference is, that I'm happy with the arrangement, I'm confident to ask for help and DH is happy to help with jobs as needed. It wouldn't work so well if I felt under pressure from DH to have the house as a show home every day and all his shirts ironed Grin

PurpleCrazyHorse · 24/08/2018 18:06

I expect DH to spend a chunk of his home time with our children, either on his own or as a family. He gets to do hobbies (as do I) after the children have gone to bed (or by arrangement at other times, I attend the odd workshop and DH is doing a fortnightly course in his hobby).

toothtruth · 24/08/2018 18:11

Im a SAHM with two pre school aged children and when my husband has a day off I expect us to share chores like washing up and sweeping the floor etc.
I do all of it when he is at work but when hes at home it is split, the childcare is also split when he is at home.
Otherwise we would both be working but only he would be getting any time off.

SleepingStandingUp · 24/08/2018 18:12

etc...Most sahp have a partner who is earning good money in order for them to be able to afford to be at home
Depends on the area. Here most sahp are at home because they can't put earn the cost of childcare and their partner is on too low a wage for them to absorb the cost of childcare if they both work. Or the child has additional needs and needs a sahp . I'm not suggesting they work any less hard merely pointing out we aren't all sahp by choice

Upsy1981 · 24/08/2018 18:23

My DD is older now so not quite the same. However, I wanted to work 4 days a week and we agreed that because of that and DH works long hours, has a long commute and works again at home in the evening, that I would do the lion's share. However, it gets on my nerves when he can't even move cups that he's used or just tidy up after himself. I don't mind cleaning but I don't want to be picking up other people's crap.

ForalltheSaints · 24/08/2018 18:26

Of course they should, as should anyone else in the house old enough to help.

Itsatravesty · 24/08/2018 18:35

For context they have three DC ages 6, 4 and 4 months

So was he pulling his weight before babies no 2 & 3 or did he suddenly change after the 3rd? Honestly I do not understand why women continue to have children with men like this as if they're suddenly going to change. If I was going by MN threads alone it would seem what most men actually want is a mother and the status of having a wife and kids. Working people without children seem to manage to do their own laundry/shopping/cleaning and cooking, as do working single parents. Having a job is no excuse for not doing these things. So YANBU but your friend is for continuing to procreate with a useless sexist twat.

Wormzy · 24/08/2018 18:44

Honestly? I know I will get a lot of grief here, but the SAHP should do all the housework. Unless you live in a huge mansion, it really doesn't take that long. I used to do about 1 1/2 hours a day plus laundry and cooking when I was on mat leave and the house was sparkling. Babies and young toddlers sleep, older ones can help out with enough instruction. All of mine did (and do).

joliejoleen · 24/08/2018 18:50

Hmmm working is not an excuse to do absolutely nothing at home. If your friend's dh lived on his own, he'd have to clean up after himself, wash his clothes, hoover, dust etc. because there would be no one else to do it for him.

FromNowOn · 24/08/2018 18:53

Babies don’t always sleep. Mine had 2 x 20 minute naps a day. And hated being put down.

When you’re both at home you both muck in with whatever needs doing.

Jeippinghmip · 24/08/2018 18:56

Yes, everyone should contribute.

DrCoconut · 24/08/2018 19:01

An interesting observation re men's and women's jobs. My grandad used to scrub/peel dirty veg. It was considered a mans job. Cutting up and cooking the clean veg was up to grandma. Anyone else seen this in older people?

BlaaBlaaBlaa · 24/08/2018 19:04

What a man child. He should be doing half on evenings and weekends. I couldn't respect a man who refused to step up to his household and childcare responsibilities.

Bumpitybumper · 24/08/2018 19:23

Of course the working partner should contribute to the housework should the SAHP request this. Unless the SAHP is taking the piss and having tonnes of downtime (which with kids of those ages I doubt very much) then the working partner should accept that the SAHP is doing their best to do what they can in the day and share the housework on their return. Being a SAHP is one of the few roles where a partner seems to feel justified in setting their own usually completely unrealistic expectations on what they think their partner should achieve in the time when they were at work. If the boot was on the other hood and the SAHP started to have a go at the working partner for not doing enough at work or tried to dictate how the WOHP managed their workload then I would expect this would go down like a lead balloon, so why is it ok when a WOHP does this to a SAHP? I think underlying this attitude is the assumption that the WOHP is somehow superior to the SAHP and therefore is the one that sets the standards and pressurises their partner to meet then through essentially abstaining from getting involved with any domestic work. I honestly think this shows a complete lack of respect for the SAHP and borders on abusive.

It's impossible to say who should do what in any relationship as people have different roles in and outside the family, have different interests and levels of competence related to domestic tasks and crucially babies/toddlers/children can be so fundamentally different that what one SAHP finds easy another would find impossible. If both partners respect each others' contribution and accept that each is doing their best then I struggle to really understand how a WOHP can opt out of any housework that remains at the end of the working day, surely this is just inherently unfair?

FromNowOn · 24/08/2018 19:33

So what does he do on the weekend then? Fuck all while she runs around after the DC and does housework?

SleepingStandingUp · 24/08/2018 19:49

but the SAHP should do all the housework
So the working parent works 37 hours. Even if yuouu add in 10 hours commute. 47.

The SAHP has kids awake 12 hours a day. Even if you assume they sleep for naps, there's

three meals a day to prep, cook, feed to child, wash up and tidy away. 21 meals a week, an hour for each one in total. 21 hours.

Active play time, teaching them to do stuff, tummy time, etc. 4 hours a day? I mean in reality it's more but let's be prescriptive. For the 5 days of the working week. 20 hours.

Washing, five loads a week, ironing, drying putting away. 6 hours.

So thats 47 hours so far, so it's even stevens. No cleaning actually done yet though.

Wormzy's 1 hr 30 a day. 7 days a week because working parent shouldn't do anything. That's another 10 hours 30.

Plus the overnight get ups - extra half hour a day. 3 hours 30.

So even excluding the rest of the watching the kids, and assuming childcare is split evenly at the weekend, that's 14 hours more per week the SAHP should do because the wage earner shouldn't have to lift a finger??

I think not

Aw12345 · 24/08/2018 19:52

DH absolutely should do some household chores. Why do some men think that a woman is there to get them out of the chores?

What about the weekend?! Feeling sorry for your friend.

cadburyegg · 24/08/2018 20:02

I agree with Bumpity , each child is different and each parent is different so what one SAHP finds easy another might find very difficult.

I have a 3.5 yo and 5 mo, I’m on maternity leave at the mo. Obviously I do most of the childcare and entertainment and all of the breastfeeding. I tidy up after us, clean the worktops, sink, tidy my 3yo’s room, unload dishwasher, do all the laundry (no ironing), and whatever else. I fire fight mainly. DH makes dinner, does the hoovering, helps with tidying before bedtime, cleans the toilets, washes the cars, mows the lawns. Verything else just gets done as and when. We have low standards, the house isn’t spotless, but I’m on maternity leave not housewife leave. Wink

The working parent should not treat the place like a hotel and should do stuff while they are there.

bobstersmum · 24/08/2018 20:07

I am glad I read this thread. I will show to dh when the time is right.

Graphista · 24/08/2018 20:16

Given your latest post, I would want to know if he was this lazy why she was still working outside the home? (I suspect yes, particularly given he's not even bothering with the "men's" tasks! People generally don't change the basics of who the are - a lazy person will always be a lazy person. Which then begs the question why was she fool enough to have more DC with him?! There's an element of choice on her part in this!)

Hobbies - seems on mn aka an excuse to get out of doing ANYTHING at home! Not acceptable that he's doing hobbies while doing sod all to contribute to home life!

PurpleCrazyHorse that sounds like you've worked out an arrangement that suits you and where you're not under pressure to do more than you can cope with (and neither is he) that's fair enough (re work shirts - my ex being army obviously wore uniform, I'm pretty good at ironing but he made the mistake of complaining the creases in his trousers weren't sharp enough once quite early in our marriage - I bundled them up, and threw them back in the basket and said 'fine! Do your own uniform from now on!' Which he did)

Wormzy - how many you got and what are age gaps? Would your other half day they did absolutely nothing at home? Do any of your DC have any health issues? Do you? Because - shock horror - not every child, nor every mother is the same!

I only have 1 DC, but, unbeknown to me at the time (another factor is Dx can take many years) has a disability which I know NOW is why they had particular problems with colic, teething, general bugs when they had them, speech and mobility. She was also (and still is) a very poor sleeper, I'm talking didn't sleep through until she was at school - again - now know this was partly due to the disability which as undx at the time I didn't know this linked in to other things. Even so, I would still say I did the bulk of the housework (especially during toddler years when it's like shovelling snow in a blizzard!) and the house was sparkling (probably more than most too as I have OCD, which flared up quite badly at this point). Doesn't mean it's ok for working outside home parent to do NOTHING including leaving their own mess for another adult to clear up after!

"My grandad used to scrub/peel dirty veg. It was considered a mans job" yep - I remember that being the case too, dirty jobs were men's work.

Bumpitybumper - excellent point about wohp seeming to think they can set what sahp is capable of in that time (and usually with no experience of doing the same themselves!) I agree it's down to a poor and outdated power dynamic. Funnily enough I'm currently watching 'call the midwife' and the expectations placed on wives and mothers not just by their husbands, but sometimes by the wives/mothers themselves is shocking. Just watched an episode where a pregnant woman basically put her life at risk by trying to stay looking and dressing as she did pre-pregnancy (garters, high heels, getting up before husband to do hair and make up despite being clearly knackered). In the script the husband was 'a good un' and didn't seem to be the one placing that expectation on her BUT I could totally understand where the pregnant mum's character was coming from - I'm saying its 'of its era' but actually my ex was a git about my weight post-pregnancy!

Sadly it's clear (just look at the number of threads on mn) that not only are too many men still perpetuating old fashioned expectations BUT as I said in earlier post they're actually doing LESS than previous generations of men did.

LoisCommonDenominator84 · 24/08/2018 20:47

Sounds like she’s got 4 children, not 3. Amazes me how many women keep having babies with useless pricks like this.

In our family SAHP parent (me)is at work the same number of hours DH is at work, then everything else is roughly 50/50. In reality I do more house stuff because I’d rather he spent that time with our child. But he doesn’t shirk on anything if it needs doing. If he fucked off doing hobbies, going out etc all the time and was not contributing there would be hell to pay!

timeisnotaline · 24/08/2018 20:53

cadburyegg I’m so glad to hear someone else’s dh cleans the toilet and hoovers and cooks - Ds1 is a very high energy 3yo and ds2 is 11 weeks - on a really good day when Ds1 is at nursery I hoover but it takes all morning - one room, pick baby up & soothe, next room, repeat... I do feel a bit of a failure but I am not getting to bed till between 2 & 4 with my night owl baby and then up with Ds1 ... I’m keeping things tidy and everyone alive. The rest we do together / dh does.

timeisnotaline · 24/08/2018 20:57

Babies and young toddlers sleep, older ones can help out with enough instruction. All of mine did (and do).
There’s always one. Fucking smug parents. You can have mine . If you expect the baby to sleep and the toddler/3yo to follow instructions you will be on your knees by lunchtime and your next 2 hours of sleep starts at 3am. Definitely not just my personal impression.

WillowRose79 · 24/08/2018 21:02

Depends how much they work tbh

MrsHoodwink · 24/08/2018 21:09

This sounds like my ex through and through. Was sick of the sentence “well you don’t properly work” Hmm

I have two kids under 5 and one has Aspergers/ocd as well as big dogs and I don’t work because of a disability Blush If he had to deal with it for days on end he would be tearing his hair out.

My current partner works longer hours per week at a far more strenuous job (and gets paid less for it) and whenever he’s here he does the same amount, in fact once the kids are in bed he does more.

This is because he knows that being a SAHP is completely exhausting mentally and physically, also that if I then had to do all the housework I’d be doing twice as much work as him, not an even share Hmm

DH in the OP is a knob. Life is better without those people I’m living proof Grin