Beijing – A Chinese man was ordered to pay his ex-wife nearly $ 8,000 for years of unpaid domestic work in a historic divorce case that sparked a furious debate in China. According to the country’s new civil code, which came into force this year, divorced spouses have the right, for the first time, to claim compensation if they have more responsibilities at home.
The ex-wife Wang told the Beijing court that during five years of marriage she “took care of the child and took care of the household chores, while (her husband) Chen did not care or participate in any other domestic matters besides going to work”.
She filed for extra compensation for household chores and childcare, according to a court statement on February 4.
The court ruled that Wang had indeed taken on more domestic responsibilities and should receive 50,000 yuan ($ 7,700) plus exclusive custody of the children and an additional 2,000 yuan in child support per month.
But after local media reported this week that Wang had appealed – originally claiming compensation for 160,000 yuan – the decision sparked a wide-ranging online debate about the value of women’s unpaid domestic work.
The trend of the hashtag “stay-at-home wife receives 50,000 yuan as compensation for housework” won more than 570 million views on the Weibo platform, similar to Twitter, on Wednesday.
“Women should never be housewives … when you get divorced, you are left with absolutely nothing. 50,000 yuan in compensation for housework is bullshit,” said one comment.
“A full-time nanny can cost more than that for half a year. Are women’s youth and feelings that cheap?” read another.
The amount reflected the couple’s wedding time plus “the effort Wang put into housework, Chen’s income and the cost of local living,” according to one of the judges, quoted on Monday by local media.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) estimated that Chinese women spend almost four hours a day doing unpaid work – 2.5 times more than men and more than the average.
The breakdown of marriage has increased in the past two decades in China, as divorce laws have been liberalized and women have become more financially independent – to the concern of Beijing, which is trying to raise birth rates in an aging population.