In the UK, spending money for children has become big business. A fifth of them now receive up to $1,800 for doing basic household chores. Cleaning the car is the best-paid chore at $3 a wash, with 13 percent offering $7.50.

A survey of 702 households has revealed that 40 percent of children do considerably less around the house than their parents had done as children. More than half of those under 16 do not make their own beds, and one-fifth would not make their own beds unless paid to do so. Similarly, while setting the table is the most common chore, one-fifth would not do it unless paid.

Boys are paid more than girls for eight out of nine tasks. The biggest difference is for unloading the dishwasher, for which boys are paid $7.60 a week and girls $1.56. Girls are only paid more for general house cleaning: $4.42 a week compared to $3.29 for boys. The Equal Opportunities Commission chair says that parents appear to expect girls to do chores, while boys should be paid. She is concerned that such attitudes keep women poorer than men throughout their lives, and endorses underpayment in employment.

Parents could save themselves $750 a year by employing a cleaner for two hours per week. However, they feel that it is worth the money to teach their children that hard work brings its rewards, and also the processes of budgeting and saving.

(Updated June 15, 2002)