A judge in Vélez-Málaga (Andalusia) has ordered a man to pay his ex-wife over €200,000 for 25 years of unpaid domestic work, based on the minimum wage throughout their marriage, court documents stated on Tuesday.
Ivana Moral’s ex-husband was ordered to pay her €204,624.86, ‘calculating the figure based on the annual minimum wage’ throughout their marriage, said the ruling.
The couple had two daughters, with their marriage governed by a separation of property regime, which specified that whatever each party earned was theirs alone, which in this case would have left the wife with no access to any of the wealth acquired through years of partnership.
Since marrying, the wife had dedicated herself ‘to essentially working in the home, which meant looking after the home and the family and all that involves’, the ruling said.
Legal papers showed a breakdown of what she would have earned annually for the years between June 1995 and December 2020.
The ex-husband was also ordered to pay her a monthly childcare allowance for the daughters, one of whom is a minor while the other is over 18.
Speaking to Cadena Ser radio, Ivana Moral said her husband did not ‘want her to work’ outside the home although he let her work at the gyms he owned, where she handled ‘public relations and acted as a monitor’.
Apart from that, ‘I have dedicated myself exclusively to housework, looking after my husband and the house’, she said.
‘He made me take on the specific role’ of doing domestic chores, to the extent that ‘I was in a place where I couldn’t really do much else’, she said.
‘I felt helpless due to the fact that I did not have financial independence. It is no longer money, it is the value that has been given to me for everything that I have done these 25 years with all the love that I have put into it,’ she said.
Spanish media reported that the man is likely to appeal the decision.
This case is not the first of its kind as a Chinese woman received similar compensation for care work back in 2021 after her divorce.
Ivana Moral: "Animo a todas las mujeres a que se lancen a por lo que es suyo"
— CanalSurNoticias (@CSurNoticias) March 8, 2023
"Despierta Andalucía" entrevista a la mujer de Vélez-Málaga que reclamó una compensación económica por haber cuidado de los hijos y del hogar durante 25 años
🌐 https://t.co/OueEErv3Rt pic.twitter.com/qJ9A0TOoCn
Sign up for the FREE Weekly Newsletter from Spain in English.
Please support Spain in English with a donation.
Click here to get your business activity or services listed on our DIRECTORY.
Click here for further details on how to ADVERTISE with us.