The value of “women’s work”

[Anonymous]

This conversation has been going on for centuries.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This conversation has been going on for centuries.

+1
What's new?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If I really knew how much work it took to raise kids, I would never have had them. For me they haven’t been worth it.

Aren’t you a peach.

[Anonymous]

We live in community with others. There are always services others do for us for free, or things we are given without compensation, that we could also pay others to do for us or give us. There are people who perfomr valuable services without measured economic compensation. These are social and economic choices, and sometimes we have no real options, and sometimes we switch between them by choice or circumstance.

-Stay with friends or family or buy, rent, pay for a hotel or live in the wild.

-Free child care from family or hire a sitter.

-A shared meal with friends or a free meal at a soup kitchen or pay at grocery or restaurant.

Many critiques of economic theory involve the failure to account for the 'free' options that are ubiquitous in society and a complete failure ot account for the economic value of ht eindividual providing the "free" goods an dservices.

[Anonymous]

Well now we know all the things that women have been doing for millennia and how critical they are to society.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Original blog post from 2015 is gone, but it got a lot of viral commentary.

"I can't afford my wife"

https://www.mindfood.com/article/texas-husband-blogs-that-he-cant-afford-his-stay-at-home-wife/

This isn't new. This a core principle of conservator family values, valuing wives and mothers and aunties and grandmothers.

As a SAHM I find that whole mentality vomit worthy. Yes I work hard but my husband works hard too. We are a team and it works for us. Neither of us is exploited or undervalued.

100% THIS ^^.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’d hate to see the bill from my DH for doing the taxes. I don’t think I can afford him.

Good lord, I do the taxes too. DH *definitely* can't afford me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If I really knew how much work it took to raise kids, I would never have had them. For me they haven’t been worth it.

I think if there was full disclosure (and people listened), there would be fewer children born.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If I really knew how much work it took to raise kids, I would never have had them. For me they haven’t been worth it.

Aren’t you a peach.

She might just be realistic. She might have harder to raise children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s hilarious to watch the world realize that all the things women had been doing for free is expensive and valuable.

https://fortune.com/2026/02/22/two-child-household-income-400000-childcare-affordability-crisis-cost-of-living/

I remember an episode of “All in the Family”, where Edith confronted Archie about the value of what she did at home. While there are obviously dated aspects of that show, it is surprisingly still relevant.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Original blog post from 2015 is gone, but it got a lot of viral commentary.

"I can't afford my wife"

https://www.mindfood.com/article/texas-husband-blogs-that-he-cant-afford-his-stay-at-home-wife/

This isn't new. This a core principle of conservator family values, valuing wives and mothers and aunties and grandmothers.

As a SAHM I find that whole mentality vomit worthy. Yes I work hard but my husband works hard too. We are a team and it works for us. Neither of us is exploited or undervalued.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If I really knew how much work it took to raise kids, I would never have had them. For me they haven’t been worth it.

I think if there was full disclosure (and people listened), there would be fewer children born.

Not every woman has nurturing, maternal instincts; and that's ok. Let them focus on their careers and interests without guilt.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’d hate to see the bill from my DH for doing the taxes. I don’t think I can afford him.

Good lord, I do the taxes too. DH *definitely* can't afford me.

Good thing DH and I are a team and we work together to make life work.

[Anonymous]

Haven't read all the posts, but this made me think of what happened when I stepped back from helping my elderly parent. I had been helping for many years and after one passed, it got to be too much because my husband had a serious health issue. I eventually stepped back even more when the parent became more and more verbally abusive. Nobody thanked me for all my free service, but wow did I hear about the costs of case management, aides, drivers, etc. Since all I got was complaints and resentment, I eventually stopped completely. You would think once people realize how much this all costs, they would treat those who do it for free with more respect.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Original blog post from 2015 is gone, but it got a lot of viral commentary.

"I can't afford my wife"

https://www.mindfood.com/article/texas-husband-blogs-that-he-cant-afford-his-stay-at-home-wife/

This isn't new. This a core principle of conservator family values, valuing wives and mothers and aunties and grandmothers.

As a SAHM I find that whole mentality vomit worthy. Yes I work hard but my husband works hard too. We are a team and it works for us. Neither of us is exploited or undervalued.

Nice job missing the point entirely!

I don’t think she missed the point at all. You just didn’t like what she said because she’s right.

I agree. Being paid for being a toilet scrubber or line cook or whatever isn’t really what the “job” is. I am irreplaceable in my kids’ lives. So is my DH obviously, but he really does very little around the house. But it’s not chores or chauffeuring that create the value. It’s that I understand my kids, I know exactly what they need emotionally, physically, etc. Nobody else can do that. If you know someone who never met their mother, or lost their mother when they were young, they would pay you all the money in the world to have her back (assuming she wasn’t abusive). I think we should stop conflating dollars with value. True value isn’t bound by the construct of man made currency.