A common scapegoat for the gender wage gap now has numeric value: U.S. women would collectively make an additional $627 billion per year if paid for their caregiving work.
That figure comes from the 2022 American Time Use Survey, conducted by the National Partnership for Women & Families. The report found that women spend 52 minutes per day, on average, caring for children and other family members — almost double the time men spend on similar tasks.
If she earned the mean wage of $14.55 per hour for child care workers or home aides, the average American woman would bring home an additional $4,600 annually.
Unpaid caregiving labor costs financial opportunity for everyone, regardless of gender, according to the report. Men's unpaid caregiving work is worth more than $300 billion per year, costing each individual $2,300 annually.