Latest / Women at Work: Career, Leadership & Modern Work / How the Office Housework Gap Holds Women Back
Transcript
- Lucas: Luna, I want to run something by you. You know that low-level hum of tasks that nobody really wants to do — taking notes in meetings, organizing the team lunch, onboarding the new intern, cleaning up the shared Slack channel? Luna: Oh, I know it well. The stuff that has to get done for the team to function, but nobody gets promoted for doing it. Lucas: Exactly. There's actually a term for it now — 'office housework.' And a 2023 study in Harvard Business Review found that women are asked to take on these non-promotable tasks 48 percent more often than men. Not just asked — they're also more likely to say yes. Luna: Forty-eight percent — that's huge. And it's not just about being asked more; it's about the cumulative cost over a career. Every hour spent organizing a team offsite is an hour not spent on high-visibility work that gets you noticed by leadership. Lucas: Right. The study was led by Linda Babcock, who's been studying the gender task gap for years. She and her team ran a series of experiments where they asked professionals to volunteer for a task — like serving on a committee to pick a new software vendor. They found that women volunteered at significantly higher rates than men, even when the task was described as having no career benefit. Luna: So it's not just external pressure — it's also internal. Women are socialized to be helpers, to keep the team running smoothly. And that instinct gets exploited. Lucas: Exactly. And here's the kicker — in the study, when they made the career cost of the task explicit, women still volunteered more. But when they gave people a chance to opt in after hearing that their male peers were less likely to volunteer, the gap narrowed. So awareness actually helps. Luna: That's encouraging — but it also puts the burden on women to fix a systemic problem. I'd love to talk about what individuals can do, but also what teams and managers should change. Lucas: Speaking of making changes — and I'm going to pause here for a second. You know, Luna, this conversation is exactly the kind of thing that makes me grateful for the community around this show. Luna: Absolutely. And we hear from listeners all the time who say these episodes have helped them navigate real career decisions — whether it's negotiating for a promotion or finally saying no to a task that isn't theirs. Lucas: If that sounds like you, and you've gotten something out of what we do here, a couple of dollars a month genuinely makes a difference. It's what keeps this show ad-free and independent. If you're able, you can support us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Luna: Yeah, even the price of a coffee helps us keep doing deep dives like this one. And we really appreciate it. Lucas: Alright, back to the office housework gap. So beyond individual awareness, what can teams do? One thing the research emphasizes is making the distribution of these tasks visible. When managers track who's doing what, the imbalance becomes obvious. Luna: Right — what gets measured gets managed. I've seen teams use a simple shared spreadsheet where everyone logs non-promotable tasks. It sounds bureaucratic, but it quickly reveals who's doing the lion's share. Lucas: And it protects women from being the default note-taker or meeting scheduler. Another tactic is rotating those roles. Everyone takes a turn, regardless of gender or seniority. That way, no one gets pigeonholed. Luna: I also think there's a role for senior leaders to model this. If a male executive visibly offers to take notes or clean up the shared drive, it signals that these tasks aren't beneath anyone. Lucas: That's a great point. And for individual women, Babcock's research suggests practicing saying no — but in a strategic way. You can say, 'I'd love to help, but I'm focused on the Q3 report right now. Could someone else take this?' Or you can ask, 'Is this task promotable?' out loud. Luna: That's hard to do in the moment. But it gets easier with practice. And I'd add: don't just say no — propose an alternative. 'I can't do it, but maybe Alex or Jordan could.' That keeps you from looking unhelpful while still protecting your time. Lucas: Exactly. And one more thing — document your contributions. When performance review time comes, women often underreport the invisible work they've done. Keep a running list: 'Organized three team events, onboarded two new hires, chaired the DEI committee.' Make sure your manager sees it. Luna: Because if you don't advocate for yourself, the system won't do it for you. And the system is still biased. That's the hard truth. Lucas: It is. But the good news is that more organizations are starting to talk about this. The term 'office housework' is catching on, and that awareness is the first step toward real change. Luna: I hope so. I'd love to see a future where the person who volunteers to take notes isn't assumed to be the only woman in the room. Lucas: That would be a win. And on that note — or maybe I should say, on that note-taking note — let's leave it there for today. Thanks for listening, and we'll catch you next time.