Unpaid Labor's Unaccounted Value: Estimating the Economic Worth of Indian Housework

Abstract

This study makes an effort to calculate the economic worth of the unpaid domestic work that Indian housewives perform but which is not included in national income statistics. Taking measure the number of hours spent on household tasks like cooking, cleaning, childcare, eldercare, shopping, etc. using time-use surveys. Based on the female labor force participation rate of around 25%, we estimate that over 90 million Indian women are full-time homemakers. We use the opportunity cost and replacement wage methods to impute a hypothetical salary to this unpaid work. The opportunity cost technique determines the value of housekeeping by calculating the potential money lost by not working. The replacement wage approach calculates the cost of hiring someone to conduct domestic work and then assigns a marketequivalent remuneration rate to those chores. We calculate the total annual value of unpaid household labor by taking into account the number of housewives, the average number of hours worked, and imputed wage rates that have been adjusted for India's economic circumstances. According to our calculations, unpaid labor accounts for more than 30% of India's GDP, which is a significant underreporting of the sector's contribution to economic welfare and production. Failing to account for it results in the systemic economic exclusion of women, depriving them of bargaining power and perpetuating gender inequality. Thus, we present policy recommendations like subsidized child/elder care infrastructure, tax incentives for hiring domestic help, and financial literacy programs for women focused on saving, investing and entrepreneurship. The low proportion of female workforce involvement due to family responsibilities, rigid gender norms, patriarchal traditions, the idea that housekeeping is intrinsically feminine, and the lack of female political influence all contribute to India's undervaluation of unpaid labor. These deeply embedded value structures must shift if Indian housewives are to become economically and socially autonomous. This research underscores the need to make unpaid household labor visible through methodologies like time-use surveys and satellite accounts. Integrating its value into national accounts can positively impact budgets, planning decisions, poverty measurements, and policies promoting inclusive growth. Our monetary valuation aims to highlight how leveraging women’s productive potential by alleviating the disproportionate burden of unpaid work could unlock trillions in economic value.