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 Shellharbour (C), accounting for 68.1% (41,961 people). This share was lower than Regional NSW (68.6%). Since 2016, the biggest change was in not doing unpaid domestic work, which increased by 3,907 people and 3.9 percentage points.
Section overview
Unpaid domestic work
Shellharbour (C) - Persons aged 15+ (Usual residence)
This table summarises unpaid domestic work for Shellharbour (C) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional NSW and change since 2016.
Unpaid domestic work snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Shellharbour (C), with comparison markers for Regional NSW.
Did Unpaid Domestic Work
2021 count
41,961
% of total
68.1%
Change from 2016
-1.3pp
41,961
68.1%
-1.3pp
Less Than 5 Hours
2021 count
11,287
% of total
18.3%
Change from 2016
-2.3pp
11,287
18.3%
-2.3pp
Between 5 And 14 Hours
2021 count
16,337
% of total
26.5%
Change from 2016
+1.1pp
16,337
26.5%
+1.1pp
Between 15 And 29 Hours
2021 count
8,054
% of total
13.1%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
8,054
13.1%
+0.2pp
30 Hours Or More
2021 count
6,283
% of total
10.2%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
6,283
10.2%
-0.3pp
Did No Unpaid Domestic Work
2021 count
16,374
% of total
26.6%
Change from 2016
+3.9pp
16,374
26.6%
+3.9pp
Not Stated
2021 count
3,318
% of total
5.4%
Change from 2016
-2.5pp
3,318
5.4%
-2.5pp
Chart view
Unpaid domestic work change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Did Unpaid Domestic Work
+3,895
-1.3pp
Less Than 5 Hours
+11
-2.3pp
Between 5 And 14 Hours
+2,396
+1.1pp
Between 15 And 29 Hours
+961
+0.2pp
30 Hours Or More
+527
-0.3pp
Did No Unpaid Domestic Work
+3,907
+3.9pp
Not Stated
-1,001
-2.5pp
Data table
Unpaid domestic work for Shellharbour (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 | 41,961 | 68.1% | 68.6% | 38,066 | 69.4% | 69.2% | +3,895 | -1.3pp |
| Less Than 5 Hours | 11,287 | 18.3% | 18.5% | 11,276 | 20.6% | 19.6% | +11 | -2.3pp |
| Between 5 And 14 Hours | 16,337 | 26.5% | 27.3% | 13,941 | 25.4% | 26.1% | +2,396 | +1.1pp |
| Between 15 And 29 Hours | 8,054 | 13.1% | 13.3% | 7,093 | 12.9% | 13.0% | +961 | +0.2pp |
| 30 Hours Or More | 6,283 | 10.2% | 9.5% | 5,756 | 10.5% | 10.5% | +527 | -0.3pp |
| Did No Unpaid Domestic Work | 16,374 | 26.6% | 23.9% | 12,467 | 22.7% | 20.5% | +3,907 | +3.9pp |
| Not Stated | 3,318 | 5.4% | 7.5% | 4,319 | 7.9% | 10.2% | -1,001 | -2.5pp |
| Total | 61,655 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 54,854 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +6,801 | 0.0pp |