HistoryExtra podcast Wages for housework: the daring 1970s campaign that challenged women's roles
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Sep 21, 2025 Emily Callaci, a historian and author focused on global feminism, dives into the revolutionary 1970s campaign for 'wages for housework'. She highlights how this movement challenged traditional gender roles and capitalism by demanding compensation for unpaid labor. Callaci shares fascinating insights into the founding figures like Selma James, the movement's impact on second-wave feminism, and its ongoing significance today, exploring internal divisions and the creative ways activists made invisible work visible.
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A Demand Focused On Work Not Role
- Wages for Housework targeted the work itself, not the identity 'housewife', making the demand theoretically inclusive of any caregiver.
- Historically women were the primary performers, but organizers said the demand could apply to men too.
Money As Political Strategy
- Activists insisted payments were literal, not symbolic, because money reveals unpaid labour's contribution to capitalism.
- Compensation would make the work visible and create leverage to challenge broader economic exploitation.
Push For Government-Funded Pay
- Campaigners urged governments to fund payments as an extension of welfare rights and family allowances.
- They recommended institutionalizing recognition through public payments rather than leaving it to private exchange.
