‘Domestic work must be paid’: Progressive United Russia MP Pushkina proposes giving a salary to stay-at-home parents
An MP from Russia’s governing party has proposed paying all those who perform "unpaid domestic work," insisting that homemakers should be financially compensated for their career decision, just like a household’s breadwinner.
Oksana Pushkina explained how citizens should be paid a wage if they choose to stay home and be parents, telling Moscow-based Radio Komsomolskaya Pravda that these people have "found their calling."
"I have a wonderful attitude towards housewives and women who have many children. They are wonderful. And if we talk about feminism, then for me, feminism is freedom of choice," she explained.
Also on rt.com Parents of LGBT children must defend them: ‘Homophobia has never led any state to a happy future,’ says MP from pro-Putin partyIn Pushkina's opinion, domestic work must be paid, in order to enable stay-at-home parents to no longer depend entirely on their spouse, and also allowing them to build up their future pension pot. The MP also clarified that her bill would not only apply to women, but men too.
"I have a family member who gave birth to four children. She quit her job, of course, after her husband said that he would provide everything for her," Pushkina explained. "And now she says to her girls, one of whom is my daughter-in-law: girls, do not repeat my mistakes. If your father wants to leave me tomorrow and go to some young woman, then I will be left with nothing at all."
This is not the first time such a concept has been proposed in Russia. Earlier this year, the nationalist LDPR party introduced a bill which would pay a minimum wage to homemakers, if the family income does not exceed two living wages in the region. The proposal ended up going nowhere.
In Russia, Pushkina has gained a reputation for her progressive views, and recently made international headlines after sticking up for the country's LGBT community. A former TV host and children's rights activist, and now a member of the governing United Russia party, she was recently recognized by the BBC in their 100 Women 2020 list, in which highlighted her support for journalists who made sexual harassment claims against fellow MP Leonid Slutsky. She currently sits on the State Duma Committee for Family, Women and Children's Issues, in the role of deputy chairwoman.
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