Fathers take on more, but mothers still bear heavier domestic workload
For a 33-year-old bank employee surnamed Jung raising a 3-year-old son in Seoul’s Yeongdeungpo District, coming home from work feels like starting a second shift. She uses a reduced working hours program for parents to leave work an hour or two early. Once her mother-in-law, who looks after the child while the couple are at work, heads home, Jung handles child care alone until her husband…
In Seoul's Yeongdeungpo District, a 33-year-old bank employee named Mrs. Jung experiences the feeling of a second job after clocking out of her 9-to-5. She utilizes a reduced working hours program for parents and departs from work an hour or two early. Once her mother-in-law returns home to care for their 3-year-old son, Jung assumes sole responsibility for childcare until her husband arrives.
"As soon as I get home, I feed my son dinner, bathe him and play with him. By then, my husband is home," she explained. "While he entertains our son, I finally get to shower, wash the dishes and tidy up. Then it's time to put our son to bed." Mrs. Jung only gets a brief respite when her son finally drifts off to sleep past 10 p.m. "Even though I leave work early, it feels like I work overtime every day," she lamented.
"My husband contributes significantly to child care, but our son seems to prefer me. I sense that a larger portion of household chores naturally falls to me." Government statistics revealed on Monday indicate that an unequal distribution of domestic tasks prevails among young working parents.
Written by urgent.news from The Korea Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
