German men who like to put their feet up in front of the television while their wives do all the cooking, cleaning and washing-up could soon face the full force of the law, as well as the simmering resentment of their long-suffering spouses.
The Green party, junior partner in the centre-left government of the Chancellor, Mr Gerhard Schroder, wants to change the country's family law to oblige men to do their fair share of the housework.
"If both partners are working, the 50-50 principle also has to hold true over the housework. A clear legal position is important because it can change attitudes among the public," according to Ms Irmingard Schewe-Gerigk, the party's spokeswoman on women's issues.
German women work about 16 hours more in the home each week than men, and a third of all married women do all the housework with no help from their husbands. Germany's family law currently states that "if the running of the household is left to one partner, this person is solely responsible for the housekeeping".
The Green proposal would replace this clause with a requirement that household duties be regulated in a spirit of partnership.
The Green minister for women's affairs in the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein, Ms Angelika Birk, expressed confidence that the measure will become law throughout Germany within a few months.
"It is sad that we still have to regulate something like this in this day and age but we need finally to have a modern model. I expect the plan to go through at federal level," she said.
Although German society is progressive on many social issues, women have far to go before they achieve full equality. Almost all top business executives are men and, if a woman is ever seen on the top floor of a German company, she is likely to be cleaning it.
Mr Schroder, at present enjoying his fourth marriage, has yet to comment on the Green proposal, but it is likely to receive short shrift from many of his male colleagues in the Social Democratic Party.
Male Greens were enthusiastic yesterday about the prospect of taking on an equal share of the housework and Mr Christian Simmert (26), a Bundestag deputy for the party, said the plan could help to break down barriers between the sexes.
"It's about showing that men can use a cooker too," he said.
