91.5% Italian women do the laundry
72% women cook
68% women clean
89% women take out the trash
Keeping the home fires burning — and taking the trash out, doing the laundry etc.– is still largely women’s work in Italy. The survey of 700 women conducted by Whirlpool appliances showed that Italian men are like their European counterparts in only one activity — 63.8% do home maintenance work.
Otherwise Italian stallions were dismal in lending a helping hand at home — if 10% of men in the rest of Europe at least wash the dishes, only 5% in Italy do and if 30% of European men take out the trash only 11% of Italian men do. Some say the blame rests with women: "Delegating, women perhaps fear they will lose the amount of power that by tradition and culture belongs to them," says sociologist Franco Ferrarotti. "It takes time. In Italy especially because it’s a family-centric country but things are gradually changing."
For many visitors to Italy, any small village may seem picturesque enough but some of the most quaint ones are now competing for special certification.