Redistribute unpaid care work

Women’s unpaid care work remains one of the most overlooked forms of labour in our country. From childcare and cooking to cleaning, elderly care and other household responsibilities, women spend much more time on care work than men. According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics’ Time Use Survey, women spend 5.9 hours a day on unpaid care work, compared to just 0.8 hours spent by men. As speakers rightly pointed out at a recent dialogue on care economy, this invisible burden limits women’s participation in the labour market and their opportunities to develop skills.

Another study found that if women’s unpaid work were assigned a monetary value, it would be three times what they earn through paid work. The Household Production Satellite Account also estimated that unpaid care work would account for around 16 percent of GDP if included in national calculations. Sadly, while unpaid care work supports households and the wider economy, it remains largely overlooked in our economic and policy discussions.

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Women’s labour force participation stood at only 38.40 percent in 2024, compared to 79.96 percent for men. Women may have the necessary education and vocational training but still be unable to take a job or start a business because of a lack of affordable daycare facilities and because, in most cases, they remain solely responsible for childcare, household management and elderly relatives.

Therefore, while recognising the value of women’s unpaid work is important, this alone will not change their lives. What is needed now is to reduce and redistribute. The relevant authorities must prioritise the issue in policy discussions and invest in measures that reduce care burden on women. They must expand affordable, quality and accredited daycare facilities, including community-based services accessible to low-income families. Workplaces should also be encouraged and, where appropriate, required to provide childcare facilities. Investing in such services would allow more women to participate in paid work, develop businesses, and acquire skills.

However, the responsibility cannot fall on the state and employers alone. Men must come forward to take a greater share of childcare and household responsibilities. Families and communities need to move away from the assumption that care is primarily a woman’s duty. Policies must reinforce this change rather than unintentionally entrenching gender stereotypes. Even the provision in the Labour Act, 2006 requiring organisations with a certain number of women workers to provide daycare facilities should be reconsidered. Moreover, the care economy itself could become an important source of employment for both women and men. Simply put, if women are to participate fully in the economy, the care work that makes economic activity possible must be shared in a fair manner.