how much is a mother worth, p.a.?

[drivingmisscrazy]

see, we were right all along here

At last, some independent research to back up what I've been saying for ages! Just goes to prove how inherently sexist the UK state is as it systematically devalues SAHPs and refuses to accept that society would collapse if it weren't for the many women (mainly) caring for children so that men can go off and earn the money. If the genders were reversed on these issues, you can bet your bottom dollar that childcare would be free.

Thanks for the link. Am bookmarking that one!

I don't think I do £150 of cleaning a week

This makes me feel a bit better, thank you. I keep thinking I should get a job as well as housewife and mother so that I would feel respected.

Lancelottie I think I'll have to do a bit more cleaning, too.

I disagree with this analysis - general housekeeping shouldn't really be included because every household has to do it - whether or not there's children. My value as a SAHP is only that work I do related to the kids - everything else I did when I worked full time as well. If I died my DH would have to pay for childcare (at a lot more that they estimate as we've young kids) but he'd do the planning, majority of cleaning etc on his own so I'm insured for the equivalent of £30000 a year (to pay for a nanny) not 60,000 euros...

I have seen these calculations before and I think they're often used by SAHP to bolster their sense of worth but it just insults working parents who do many of the things as well. And honestly, with nannies costing what they do, my ego is okay with how much I would cost to replace without considering all the extras that every parent does.

what abdnhiker said. At least it's not that vile piece of twee, which likens the grocery shopping to being a buyer...

I provide very expensive, high quality chilcare so in fact I am actually worth £75000!

...sometimes even childcare too

I disagree house work is still a job and if I were rich I would pay someone to do it.

So it makes sense to me I mean the argument that you still have to do it if you are both working is fair enough, but either way all the jobs listed have to be done, some people pay people to do it others do it themselves but by one of the couple doing it they are doing work that would otherwise have to be paid for.

I agree with abdnhiker too, okay you can pay for someone to do these things but I think a 'mother's worth' shoudl be calcuated on things she does that nonmothers/parents do, so cooking, housework etc are mostly the same, (yeah, children cause mroe mess, but lets not be pedantic)

I agree that a mother's worth but it is called a house wife and a housewife without children would do this.

Ridiculous as working parents also do this and how much is a working mum worth then? An absolute fortune. Not everything can be measured in monetary terms.

Those costs toted up are based on wages paid to professionals. Does every mother do every task listed to a professional standard?

In any case, I don't see the point in putting a monetary value on tasks that have to be done in the home whether you are single, married with or without children.

It is called 'life' - do single people living on their own try to value the worth of the tasks they do at home?

do you know i was actually sitting thinking about how much of a salary i would get if i even got minimum wage for all the jobs i do in day to day life as a mother.

I think those numbers are on the plucked from the air side. When we had a professional cleaner she took 5 hours to clean our four bedroom house (and did it much better than either dh or I) and cost rather less than that (not sure about the pound - euro conversion rate though). Seven hours cooking on the other hand is not enough for three meals a day I would have thought - not sure what the hourly rate for a cafe level cook is though.

In any case this is a study to encourage men to insure their wives (no mention of even the possibility of fathers looking after their children then) so of course the numbers will be as high as they can possibly make them.

Who on earth as ever had a childminding job that pays 15 quid an hour. I work with kids and have never known anyone be paid that much. I have work in a nursery and do all the cleaning, 30+ nappies a day, making all meals etc and I only got paid 6 quid an hour.

I hate things like this I do everything at home but dont class it as work. Looking after your own kids is definitely not work in my eyes, its fun. I think this is one of those articles for housewives to feel a bit better