Study reveals gender divide in home chores

10:14 12 March 2009

A survey of 5,000 adults revealed household chores can be divided into two different groups dependent gender role within the home.

These are classed as 'Blue Jobs' and 'Pink Jobs' by the poll conducted by TheBabyWebsite.com.

It found that mowing the lawn, washing up after dinner and cleaning the windows are among the jobs women think should be carried out by the man of the house, resulting in a list of 'Blue Jobs' that have become their partner's responsibility.

Meanwhile women have resigned themselves to carrying out the 'Pink Jobs' - tasks such as remembering everyone's birthdays, organising the social calendar and replacing the toilet roll when it runs out.

The poll revealed that men are more likely to be delegated tasks of bravery and courage such as investigating strange noises in the night and removing spiders from the bath tub.

Women are given the more unsavoury and family-oriented chores of treating childrens head lice and verrucas, removing ear wax, wiping bottoms and changing nappies.

A spokesman for TheBabyWebsite said: "There is a very clear divide between the chores men and women will do, but at least it shows that both sexes are responsible for the running of the household.

"There seems to be a general trend that women are responsible for the day to day chores, such as keeping the house clean and tidy.

"But men make sure things are fixed and in good working order. Neither sex is afraid of getting their hands dirty."

The men tend to keep the garden in check while most women can be found in the kitchen. In fact, men are only required to enter the kitchen to open a particular sticky lid on a jar, or to carve the Sunday Roast once dinner has been cooked.

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A spokesman for TheBabyWebsite added: "We're sure that in some households there will be a point where a man is forced to do a pink job, and a woman finds herself carrying out the odd blue job.

"The delegation of these chores has nothing to do with our ability or inability to do various tasks. It's just that men tend to be better at more hands-on chores, and women are naturally more organized and methodical in their approach to running the house."

The top 20 'Blue Jobs'

1. Getting things out of the loft
2. Investigating strange noises in the night
3. Going to the tip
4. Topping up oil / radiator / screen wash /washing the car
5. Mowing the lawn
6. Edge-trimming and hedge-trimming
7. Making electronic gadgets work when getting them out of the box
8. Getting a spider out of the bath
9. Unblocking the toilet with a plunger
10. Putting out the bins
11. Fixing broken toys
12. Building flat-pack furniture
13. Removing sticky lids from jars
14. Washing up after dinner
15. Setting up the recorder for TV programmes
16. Changing a light bulb
17. Going to the shop for papers on a Sunday morning
18. Cleaning windows
19. Sweeping the driveway
20. Carving the roast

The top 20 'Pink Jobs'

1. Remembering everyone's birthday
2. Treating the children's head lice/verrucas
3. Changing bed linen
4. Buying presents
5. Pairing socks as the come out of the dryer
6. Organising the social calendar
7. Washing clothes
8. Baking cakes for the PTA
9. Organising the children's social life
10. Removing the kid's ear wax
11. School packed lunches
12. Ironing
13. Binning out-of-date food
14. Dusting
15. Cleaning the oven
16. Replacing the toilet rolls when it runs out
17. Attending children's parties
18. Changing nappies and wiping toddler's bums
19. Booking the babysitter
20. Cleaning up after the children when they are sick