A judge in Andalusia, Spain handed down an order recently directing a man to pay his ex-wife 200,000 Euros (about $218,000) in “back pay” for the 25 years of unpaid household work she performed during their marriage. The calculation was based on the minimum wage in Spain of about $525 per month.
In the ruling, the court determined that housewife Ivana Moral should be paid by her husband for the time they were married because she took care of the house and their children.
Under a separation of property regime, the wife would not be able to get any of the couple’s wealth because she was not the breadwinner.
The judge agreed that the wife, who had spent the prior 25 years caring for the couple’s two daughters and managing the family home, would be financially devastated by the divorce.
In court documents, the woman’s annual earnings from June 1995 to December 2020 were detailed.
In addition, the ex-husband was ordered to pay alimony and child support because the children continued to reside with the mother.
Ivana Moral stated that her husband preferred she not work outside the home, despite his frequent requests for her assistance with his gym business.
She told the judge that as a wife and mother, she was prevented from pursuing her own interests and receiving any professional training. She claimed she had no experience outside of her husband’s gym job, housework, and raising their daughters that would prepare her for financial independence following the dissolution of the marriage.
The woman applauded the judge’s verdict.
The husband was unavailable for comment.