What if parenting came with a paycheck? The idea that stay-at-home parents should receive a government salary isn’t just a modern thought experiment—it’s a reflection of how societies value (or undervalue) unpaid labor. Stay-at-home parenting involves full-time care, education, and emotional support for children, often including household management and elder care. Yet despite its vital role in shaping future generations, this work has historically gone unpaid and largely invisible in economic systems. The concept of compensating domestic labor has been discussed since the feminist movements of the 1960s and 70s, when scholars and activists argued that the economy depends on work traditionally done by women in the home. The phrase “wages for housework” emerged as a rallying cry to challenge the notion that caregiving isn't "real" work. In recent decades, the conversation has expanded to include parental leave policies, universal basic income, and caregiver tax credits—ways governments have tried to recognize the social value of raising children. As birth rates decline and work-life dynamics evolve, the debate gains new urgency. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the economic and emotional burden of unpaid care, placing stay-at-home parents—mostly mothers—at the center of global conversations about labor, gender equity, and public policy. Understanding this topic involves tracing how economies and governments define value, care, and contribution beyond traditional employment.