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.
Related topics
Key insight
In 2021, doing unpaid domestic work was the most common response among residents aged 15 and over in Lake Macquarie (C), accounting for 71.3% (124,863 people). This share was higher than Regional NSW (68.6%). Since 2016, the biggest change was in not doing unpaid domestic work, which increased by 8,212 people and 3.1 percentage points.
Section overview
Unpaid domestic work
Lake Macquarie (C) - Persons aged 15+ (Usual residence)
This table summarises unpaid domestic work for Lake Macquarie (C) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional NSW and change since 2016.
Unpaid domestic work snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Lake Macquarie (C), with comparison markers for Regional NSW.
Did Unpaid Domestic Work
2021 count
124,863
% of total
71.3%
Change from 2016
-1.1pp
124,863
71.3%
-1.1pp
Less Than 5 Hours
2021 count
33,729
% of total
19.3%
Change from 2016
-1.4pp
33,729
19.3%
-1.4pp
Between 5 And 14 Hours
2021 count
50,023
% of total
28.6%
Change from 2016
+1.3pp
50,023
28.6%
+1.3pp
Between 15 And 29 Hours
2021 count
24,552
% of total
14.0%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
24,552
14.0%
+0.2pp
30 Hours Or More
2021 count
16,559
% of total
9.5%
Change from 2016
-1.0pp
16,559
9.5%
-1.0pp
Did No Unpaid Domestic Work
2021 count
41,819
% of total
23.9%
Change from 2016
+3.1pp
41,819
23.9%
+3.1pp
Not Stated
2021 count
8,402
% of total
4.8%
Change from 2016
-2.0pp
8,402
4.8%
-2.0pp
Chart view
Unpaid domestic work change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Did Unpaid Domestic Work
+8,153
-1.1pp
Less Than 5 Hours
+271
-1.4pp
Between 5 And 14 Hours
+5,940
+1.3pp
Between 15 And 29 Hours
+2,303
+0.2pp
30 Hours Or More
-361
-1.0pp
Did No Unpaid Domestic Work
+8,212
+3.1pp
Not Stated
-2,542
-2.0pp
Data table
Unpaid domestic work for Lake Macquarie (C). Unpaid domestic work. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional NSW.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional NSW% | Count | % | Regional NSW% | Count | pp | |
| Did Unpaid Domestic Work | 124,863 | 71.3% | 68.6% | 116,710 | 72.4% | 69.2% | +8,153 | -1.1pp |
| Less Than 5 Hours | 33,729 | 19.3% | 18.5% | 33,458 | 20.7% | 19.6% | +271 | -1.4pp |
| Between 5 And 14 Hours | 50,023 | 28.6% | 27.3% | 44,083 | 27.3% | 26.1% | +5,940 | +1.3pp |
| Between 15 And 29 Hours | 24,552 | 14.0% | 13.3% | 22,249 | 13.8% | 13.0% | +2,303 | +0.2pp |
| 30 Hours Or More | 16,559 | 9.5% | 9.5% | 16,920 | 10.5% | 10.5% | -361 | -1.0pp |
| Did No Unpaid Domestic Work | 41,819 | 23.9% | 23.9% | 33,607 | 20.8% | 20.5% | +8,212 | +3.1pp |
| Not Stated | 8,402 | 4.8% | 7.5% | 10,944 | 6.8% | 10.2% | -2,542 | -2.0pp |
| Total | 175,079 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 161,262 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +13,817 | 0.0pp |