Volume 10, Number 1
The Debate on Wages for Domestic Work: A Look at the 1970s in Italy
Authors
Chiara Falcone, University of Milan, Italy
Abstract
This paper explores the theoretical debates surrounding domestic work in 1970s Italy, focusing on the feminist movement’s call for recognizing and remunerating this labor. As societal changes, including increased women’s education and workforce participation, highlighted domestic work’s invisibility and undervaluation, feminists like Mariarosa Dalla Costa and Silvia Federici initiated the International Campaign for Wages for Housework to challenge capitalism’s gendered labor dynamics. Using a historical and theoretical approach, this study examines the ideological and practical efforts to redefine domestic labor as essential work and interrogates the capitalist structures that perpetuate its invisibility and unpaid status. The findings reveal that acknowledging domestic work as labor is not only a step toward economic recognition for women but also a critique of the broader social order that devalues reproductive labor. This research underscores the ongoing relevance of these debates, suggesting pathways for further inquiry into the intersections of gender, labor, and economic justice.
Keywords
Feminism, Domestic work, Reproductive labor, Capitalism, Economic recognition