Uses of Time

» The poverty of time emerges as a key dimension of contemporary social inequality, especially for women.

» This phenomenon, which measures the lack of free time after fulfilling paid work obligations, domestic tasks, and personal care, has a clear gender bias.

Millions of people around the world suffer from a silent crisis: time poverty. It is a form of exclusion that conditions the quality of life for people in many Western cities. Having poverty of time means having less than 3 hours a day for personal activities, training, or leisure. 

In this sense, as indicated in the Time Dossier “From Poverty of Time to Time for Life” prepared by the City Council of Barcelona, poverty of time occurs when one does not have personal time after carrying out all the necessary work (both paid and unpaid) and meeting all basic activities.

Time poverty in the City of Barcelona

According to the latest report from the Barcelona Public Health Agency (ASPB), Spanish acronyms) published in 2024, “Health in Barcelona 2023”, 68% of the people suffering from time poverty are women, who also spend 4 more hours a day than men on unpaid tasks such as caregiving. In this line, the report reveals that having children increases the risk of time poverty by 40%. 

Furthermore, the ASPB report also warns of the negative impact of this phenomenon on the physical health and mental well-being of those who suffer from it, primarily women: physical activity decreases by 25%, which accentuates the likelihood of suffering from chronic illnesses, the chances of experiencing anxiety increase by 30%, sleep quality deteriorates, and opportunities for personal and professional development are limited. 

On the other hand, the emergence of technology, instead of alleviating the workload as one might think, has increased demands on women by 20%, according to the ASPB. An example is the situation experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic, when many women were overwhelmed by balancing telecommuting and caregiving tasks. It was shown that technology without shared responsibility does not necessarily help in better time management.

Local Initiatives Against Poverty of Time

Local initiatives are being developed to mitigate time poverty, such as “Time Banks”, which promote the exchange of time, services, skills, knowledge, relationships, and support among people who live and/or work in the same neighborhood, town, or city. Barcelona has 32 Time Banks that exchanged 18,000 hours of services in 2023, ranging from Catalan classes to caring for dependent elderly individuals. 

Other municipal initiatives include the “Concilia” program created by the City Council of Barcelona in 2020, which offers free childcare services for children aged 1 to 12 at 9 locations across Barcelona, open from Monday to Saturday outside of school hours (afternoons during the week and all day on Saturdays). The program aims to provide care spaces for families at risk with children at home who lack time to perform basic tasks (housework, work, or attend key appointments) or to have rest time, especially for women without a support network.

Overall, the City Council of Barcelona continues to work on reducing time poverty through the promotion of municipal policies that recognize and guarantee time as a citizen’s right. In this regard, the new edition of the Time Use Survey, results of which are expected in 2025, will be particularly significant for the design, planning, and measures aimed at reducing all factors that cause time poverty and will allow us to progress toward a healthier, more equitable, efficient, and sustainable culture of time.