While the debate on work-life balance is progressing slowly, the data continues to make one thing clear: women are carrying more responsibilities and have less time for themselves. This is confirmed by the latest Barcelona Municipal Omnibus Survey, which in its December 2024 edition analyzed in depth the so-called time poverty – the lack of hours available for personal or leisure activities after covering paid and unpaid work.
The report reveals that 32.2 % of women do nothave at least three hours a day for themselves, compared to 24.6 % of men. The gap widens in the middle ages, between 35 and 54, when many women combine employment with parenting, care and household management. In figures, women spend an average of 8.5 hours a day on caregiving, while men spend 6.2 hours.7
The consequence of this burden is clear: 59.6 % of women say they feel anguish due to lack of time, compared to 49.6 % of men. In addition, 17% of women with dependents say they devote themselves entirely to care, a task that is not always recognized or made visible.
Despite all this, the majority consider their dedication to be “adequate”: 57% of women and 56% of men. Paradoxically, however, more men (35.5%) than women (33.8%) say they spend “not enough” time on caregiving.
In a city that prides itself on social innovation, this survey puts an urgent challenge on the table: to rethink the sharing of time so that it is also a question of equality. Because the clock, when it is not fair, also marks inequalities.