Court Orders Husband to Pay Wife r100 000 for 5 Years of Housework
- A fed up wife demanded compensation from ex-husband Chen for leaving all the childbearing and household chores to her
- The ruling comes in the wake of a new civil code in China where an individual has the right to seek compensation from a spouse for services rendered
- The case has stirred debate on social media as netizens try to crack the monetary value of domestic work
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Just how much value can you attach to household chores like washing dishes, babysitting and doing laundry, especially if done by a spouse?
Source: UGC
That is the subject of debate across the world after a landmark ruling in China where a divorce court has ordered husband Chen to pay his estranged wife Wang 50,000 yuan (R 111 000) as compensation for the five years she 'worked' for him as a wife.
The ruling comes in the wake of a new civil code in China which states that an individual has the right to seek compensation from a former spouse if, during the period of the marriage, they handled unpaid housework including primary care for children and elderly parents.
According to judge Feng Miao of Beijing's Fangshan District Court, while the division of tangible property is possible because the value can be attached, housework cannot.
"Housework can improve the ability of the other spouse to achieve personal, individual academic growth, and this is not reflected in the tangible property,” he explained.
The complainant Wang indicated that Chen left all the burden of childrearing and raising their child to her while he was busy working.
“He didn’t care about or participate in any kind of chores,” said Wang.
Chen and Wang got married in 2015 but went separate ways in 2018, after which their son was taken up by Wang.
When Chen officially filed for divorce in 2020, Wang requested part of the property the two owned as well as 50,000 yuan (KSh 850, 000) in financial compensation.
The court ruling awarded custody of the couple's son to Wang and ordered Chen to deposit 2,000 yuan (R10 000) monthly in Wang's account for upkeep.
Given that it is a never-heard-before ruling, the case has stirred debate on social media as netizens try to crack the monetary value of domestic work.
“Everyone who has done housework knows that doing housework is no easier than going to work, it’s often harder,” said a Weibo user.
“The key thing about being a full-time wife is that you lose your career growth opportunities. After a while, your future career will be discounted a lot, and there is no way to measure this with money,” said another.
"I'm a bit speechless, the work of a full-time housewife is being underestimated. In Beijing, hiring a nanny for a year costs more than 50,000 yuan," another wrote.
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Source: Briefly News
Sibusisiwe Lwandle (Head of Entertainment) Sibusisiwe Lwandle is the Head of Entertainment at Briefly News (joined in 2019). She holds one Bachelor of Arts (BA) and one Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree from the University of Cape Town and the University of KZN respectively. She has over 10 years of experience in journalism, having worked in print, online and broadcast media. She has worked at Independent Media and 1KZNTV and has contributed columns to the Washington Post. Passed set of trainings by Google News Initiative. Email: sibusisiwe.lwandle@briefly.co.za
Kelly Lippke (Senior Editor) Kelly Lippke is a copy editor/proofreader who started her career at the Northern-Natal Courier with a BA in Communication Science/Psychology (Unisa, 2007). Kelly has worked for several Caxton publications, including the Highway Mail and Northglen News. Kelly’s unique editing perspective stems from an additional major in Linguistics. Kelly joined Briefly News in 2018 and she has 14 years of experience. Kelly has also passed a set of trainings by Google News Initiative. You can reach her at kelly.lippke@briefly.co.za.
