Household chores, childcare, and assistance to elderly relatives constitute a huge volume of labor that remains outside Armenia's official statistics. A new study has shown that a significant part of this burden falls on women and actually represents a separate economic sector.
According to the first National Time Transfer Accounts (NTTA) study, women in Armenia perform 4–5 times more unpaid work than men. The difference is especially noticeable at the age of 30–35: during this period, the volume of household chores and care can reach 47–49 hours per week, which is comparable to a full-time additional employment.
Researchers note that the total volume of unpaid labor can correspond to 16–30% of the country's economy. At the same time, about 78% of all work performed by women has no monetary compensation and is not reflected in traditional economic indicators.
Tigran Jrbashyan, Head of Management Consulting at Ameria, called unpaid labor the largest "invisible" sector of Armenia's economy. In his opinion, the data obtained show the need to revise state policy in the field of employment, social support, and accounting for the real contribution of citizens to the country's economy.