Employment

Unpaid domestic work

About this topic

Unpaid domestic work measures how much time people aged 15 years and over spent doing housework for their household in the week before the Census. It helps show the distribution of unpaid labour that supports home and family life.

This topic is useful for understanding household roles, time pressures, and gender or life-stage differences in unpaid work. It is best read with household type, employment, and income, because the amount of unpaid domestic work can be shaped by family structure and the ability to outsource tasks.

Interpretation notes

  • The hours refer to unpaid domestic work done for the person's household in the week before the Census.
  • This topic does not measure childcare, disability care, or other unpaid help unless it falls within domestic work for the household.

Key insight

In 2021, doing unpaid domestic work was the most common response among residents aged 15 and over in Glen Eira (C), accounting for 72.5% (89,083 people). This share was higher than Greater Melbourne (66.6%). Since 2016, the biggest change was in between 5 And 14 Hours, which increased by 6,100 people and 3.2 percentage points.

Section overview

Unpaid domestic work

Glen Eira (C) - Persons aged 15+ (Usual residence)

This table summarises unpaid domestic work for Glen Eira (C) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Greater Melbourne and change since 2016.

Unpaid domestic work snapshot

2021 distribution by category for Glen Eira (C), with comparison markers for Greater Melbourne.

Glen Eira (C)
Greater Melbourne

Did Unpaid Domestic Work

2021 count

89,083

% of total

72.5%

Change from 2016

+0.2pp

Less Than 5 Hours

2021 count

28,483

% of total

23.2%

Change from 2016

-4.1pp

Between 5 And 14 Hours

2021 count

37,879

% of total

30.8%

Change from 2016

+3.2pp

Between 15 And 29 Hours

2021 count

14,593

% of total

11.9%

Change from 2016

+1.2pp

30 Hours Or More

2021 count

8,128

% of total

6.6%

Change from 2016

-0.1pp

Did No Unpaid Domestic Work

2021 count

28,542

% of total

23.2%

Change from 2016

+1.7pp

Not Stated

2021 count

5,215

% of total

4.2%

Change from 2016

-2.0pp

Data table

Unpaid domestic work for Glen Eira (C). Unpaid domestic work. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Greater Melbourne.

Unpaid domestic work for Glen Eira (C). Unpaid domestic work. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Greater Melbourne.
Unpaid domestic work for Glen Eira (C). Unpaid domestic work. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Greater Melbourne.
Category20212016Change
Count%Greater Melbourne%Count%Greater Melbourne%Countpp
Did Unpaid Domestic Work89,08372.5%66.6%83,19672.3%68.2%+5,887+0.2pp
Less Than 5 Hours28,48323.2%20.4%31,39027.3%24.5%-2,907-4.1pp
Between 5 And 14 Hours37,87930.8%27.1%31,77927.6%25.3%+6,100+3.2pp
Between 15 And 29 Hours14,59311.9%11.3%12,33010.7%10.5%+2,263+1.2pp
30 Hours Or More8,1286.6%7.8%7,6976.7%8.0%+431-0.1pp
Did No Unpaid Domestic Work28,54223.2%27.9%24,73921.5%24.1%+3,803+1.7pp
Not Stated5,2154.2%5.5%7,1766.2%7.7%-1,961-2.0pp
Total122,840100.0%100.0%115,105100.0%100.0%+7,7350.0pp