Mothers still do the vast majority of the child care load
It's a given that young children usually spend more time with their mothers than their fathers, but data shows how big the gap is.
On average, children spent half an hour a day alone with their fathers on weekdays between 2004 and 2008, according to the Australian Institute of Family Studies. They spent five hours with their mother and 2.5 hours with both.
And fathers are not doing much to make up the difference on weekends. They spent fewer than 1.5 hours alone with their children on weekends, and less if the child was an infant or toddler.
Children spent 3.5 hours alone with their mothers on the weekend, and five hours with both parents.
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