The Meanings and Experiences of Domestic Labour among Rural Women in Croatia

Worldwide research has shown that women tend to devote a disproportionate amount of time to domestic labour that can be a barrier to gender equality and women's empowerment. The aim of this study is to investigate the extent to which women's role in unpaid domestic labour has an effect on their well-being and whether this presents a barrier to their empowerment or their ability ‘to do and be’ what they value. The study is based on ethnographic research in six rural villages located at the very north-eastern part of Croatia in Slavonia. This article draws on rural women's (and men's) accounts of their meanings and experiences in unpaid domestic labour. Pertaining to this labour, it also reviews their contribution as well as their lack of access to well-being in the family and wider community. Findings show that women's engagement in domestic labour has both positive and negative effects on their well-being, as well as that of their families and the wider community.