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 Somerset (R), accounting for 67.6% (13,830 people). This share was lower than Greater Brisbane (70.2%). Since 2016, the biggest change was in not doing unpaid domestic work, which increased by 1,054 people and 4.3 percentage points.
Section overview
Unpaid domestic work
Somerset (R) - Persons aged 15+ (Usual residence)
This table summarises unpaid domestic work for Somerset (R) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Greater Brisbane and change since 2016.
Unpaid domestic work snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Somerset (R), with comparison markers for Greater Brisbane.
Did Unpaid Domestic Work
2021 count
13,830
% of total
67.6%
Change from 2016
-0.6pp
13,830
67.6%
-0.6pp
Less Than 5 Hours
2021 count
3,470
% of total
17.0%
Change from 2016
-0.6pp
3,470
17.0%
-0.6pp
Between 5 And 14 Hours
2021 count
5,022
% of total
24.5%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
5,022
24.5%
+0.2pp
Between 15 And 29 Hours
2021 count
2,756
% of total
13.5%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
2,756
13.5%
+0.3pp
30 Hours Or More
2021 count
2,582
% of total
12.6%
Change from 2016
-0.5pp
2,582
12.6%
-0.5pp
Did No Unpaid Domestic Work
2021 count
5,010
% of total
24.5%
Change from 2016
+4.3pp
5,010
24.5%
+4.3pp
Not Stated
2021 count
1,629
% of total
8.0%
Change from 2016
-3.6pp
1,629
8.0%
-3.6pp
Chart view
Unpaid domestic work change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Did Unpaid Domestic Work
+478
-0.6pp
Less Than 5 Hours
+28
-0.6pp
Between 5 And 14 Hours
+260
+0.2pp
Between 15 And 29 Hours
+171
+0.3pp
30 Hours Or More
+19
-0.5pp
Did No Unpaid Domestic Work
+1,054
+4.3pp
Not Stated
-632
-3.6pp
Data table
Unpaid domestic work for Somerset (R). Unpaid domestic work. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Greater Brisbane.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Greater Brisbane% | Count | % | Greater Brisbane% | Count | pp | |
| Did Unpaid Domestic Work | 13,830 | 67.6% | 70.2% | 13,352 | 68.2% | 71.9% | +478 | -0.6pp |
| Less Than 5 Hours | 3,470 | 17.0% | 21.1% | 3,442 | 17.6% | 24.3% | +28 | -0.6pp |
| Between 5 And 14 Hours | 5,022 | 24.5% | 28.8% | 4,762 | 24.3% | 27.5% | +260 | +0.2pp |
| Between 15 And 29 Hours | 2,756 | 13.5% | 12.1% | 2,585 | 13.2% | 11.5% | +171 | +0.3pp |
| 30 Hours Or More | 2,582 | 12.6% | 8.1% | 2,563 | 13.1% | 8.6% | +19 | -0.5pp |
| Did No Unpaid Domestic Work | 5,010 | 24.5% | 24.0% | 3,956 | 20.2% | 20.3% | +1,054 | +4.3pp |
| Not Stated | 1,629 | 8.0% | 5.8% | 2,261 | 11.6% | 7.8% | -632 | -3.6pp |
| Total | 20,459 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 19,567 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +892 | 0.0pp |