Unpaid Household Work: Estimated Value and Time Spent on Domestic Tasks and Caregiving
What GAO Found Unpaid household work includes domestic tasks, such as cooking and cleaning, as well as caregiving. Studies show that supplementing Gross Domestic Product (GDP) with the value of unpaid household work can provide a better understanding of the U.S. economy than GDP alone. For example, the decline in economic output during the COVID-19 recession was smaller when this value was included. Unpaid household work is not included in GDP because it takes place outside of formal market transactions and requires additional resources to calculate. According to economists GAO interviewed, valuing unpaid work can help inform policies that affect caregivers, such as policies intended to imp.
Reported by Maria LopezUnpaid Household Work: Estimated Value and Time Spent on Domestic Tasks and Caregiving.
The item is dated Thu, 17 Sep 2026 07:22:32 -0400.
TeamCog is carrying it as a audits report from GAO reports and testimonies RSS.
What GAO Found Unpaid household work includes domestic tasks, such as cooking and cleaning, as well as caregiving.
Studies show that supplementing Gross Domestic Product (GDP) with the value of unpaid household work can provide a better understanding of the U.S. economy than GDP alone.
For example, the decline in economic output during the COVID-19 recession was smaller when this value was included.
Unpaid household work is not included in GDP because it takes place outside of formal market transactions and requires additional resources to calculate.
According to economists GAO interviewed, valuing unpaid work can help inform policies that affect caregivers, such as policies intended to imp…
Official Source
GAO reports and testimonies RSS. Accessed 2026-09-17T15:00:06.738Z.