Invisible Labour, Unequal Burden: Gender Discrimination And The Unpaid Household Work Of Women In India
Jyoti, LL.M. (CPGLS), Constitutional and Administrative Law, Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University (BBAU), Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India.
ABSTRACT
Women’s unpaid household work constitutes a substantial yet largely invisible form of labour in India. Despite its essential contribution to the functioning of families and the wider economy, domestic work performed predominantly by women is generally excluded from conventional notions of productive employment because it does not generate a direct monetary wage. This invisibility reflects more than an economic limitation; it is closely connected with entrenched gender roles, patriarchal expectations and discrimination within the household. The persistent assumption that cooking, cleaning, caregiving and other domestic responsibilities are naturally women’s duties contributes to the unequal distribution of labour and restricts women’s economic independence, employment opportunities and social recognition. This paper critically examines the gendered nature of unpaid household work in India and analyses the reasons for its continued undervaluation. It further evaluates the economic significance of such labour through the perspectives of opportunity cost, time use and monetary valuation. The study examines the extent to which the Indian constitutional and legal framework, particularly the principles of equality, dignity and gender justice, recognises women’s domestic contribution. Judicial developments concerning the economic value of homemakers are also analysed to identify the shift from viewing homemakers as economically inactive to recognising their contribution as valuable labour. The paper argues that meaningful gender justice requires not merely recognition or monetary valuation, but measures aimed at recognising, reducing and redistributing unpaid household work.
Keywords: Unpaid Household Labour; Gender Discrimination; Economic Valuation; Women’s Rights; Constitutional Equality; Gender Justice.
