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Flexible Working and the Division of Housework and Childcare: Examining Divisions across Arrangement and Occupational Lines

Author

Listed:
  • Heejung Chung

    (University of Kent, UK)

  • Cara Booker

    (University of Essex, UK)

Abstract

Using the UK Household Longitudinal Study we examine how flexible working is associated with the division of housework and childcare among dual-earner heterosexual couples with young children. Although flexible working may enable better work-family integration, it can also reinforce traditional divisions of domestic labour where women perform more housework and childcare. The degree to which this occurs may vary across arrangements due to differences in the flexibility and permeability of boundaries. We also expect occupational variations but in a paradoxical manner; the constraints and resources workers have may cause the associations to conflict with assumptions based on gender role attitudes. Results show that arrangements that allow more boundary blurring, such as homeworking, are associated with more traditional divisions of childcare but not necessarily of housework. Flexitime, especially for the lower-skilled/paid occupations, enables a more egalitarian division of labour, possibly because it is used to maximise households’ working hours and income.

Suggested Citation

  • Heejung Chung & Cara Booker, 2023. "Flexible Working and the Division of Housework and Childcare: Examining Divisions across Arrangement and Occupational Lines," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 37(1), pages 236-256, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:woemps:v:37:y:2023:i:1:p:236-256
    DOI: 10.1177/09500170221096586
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Anna Kurowska, 2020. "Gendered Effects of Home-Based Work on Parents’ Capability to Balance Work with Non-work: Two Countries with Different Models of Division of Labour Compared," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 151(2), pages 405-425, September.
    2. Heejung Chung & Tanja Lippe, 2020. "Flexible Working, Work–Life Balance, and Gender Equality: Introduction," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 151(2), pages 365-381, September.
    3. Heejung Chung & Mariska van der Horst, 2020. "Flexible Working and Unpaid Overtime in the UK: The Role of Gender, Parental and Occupational Status," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 151(2), pages 495-520, September.
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    6. Jaeseung Kim, 2020. "Workplace Flexibility and Parent–Child Interactions Among Working Parents in the U.S," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 151(2), pages 427-469, September.
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