Working Women Do The Chores, Too

(AP)  Working women spend more time on housework than working men and, perhaps not surprisingly, have less leisure time on an average day than men, according to a Labor Department survey.

The department's Time Use Survey, based on reports from 21,000 people on their activities during an average day last year, found that employed women averaged about an hour more per day on housework than did employed men.

Men, on the other hand, averaged more time at work than full-time working women - 8.3 hours compared with 7.7 hours - and were more likely to participate in sports - 19 percent compared with 16 percent.

Both men and women spent about half of their leisure time watching television. Men, however, found more leisure time in their days - 5.4 hours compared with 4.8 hours for women.

In households with the youngest child under 6 years of age, women spent an average of 2.7 hours in child-care activities, compared with 1.2 hours for men.

The research was conducted by the Census Bureau and released by the Labor Department on Tuesday.

By Kata Kertesz