Istri Sebagai Penanggung Jawab Nafkah Keluarga: Kajian Sosiologi Hukum di Tengah Masyarakat Muslim Desa Sikayu Kecamatan Comal Kabupaten Pemalang

Wife as the Breadwinner of the Family: A Sociological and Legal Study among the Muslim Community in Sikayu Village, Comal District, Pemalang Regency

Abstract

In principle, a husband has an obligation to provide for his wife as stated in the Quran and Marriage Law. However, the reality in Sikayu Village is that wives are the ones who provide for the family. This article aims to explain the phenomenon of wives as the breadwinners of the family and attempts to analyze the reasons and implications of this behavior. This study used a juridical-sociological method through the Islamic family law approach. The data used were primary and secondary data, where the primary data were obtained directly from the Muslim community in Sikayu Village, while the secondary data were library materials (primary and secondary sources). The research subjects focused on Muslim women who are the main breadwinners in their families. The techniques used to collect data were interviews, documentation, and observation. The research findings showed that cases of wives as breadwinners are very common in Sikayu Village, and in some cases, wives replace their husbands as the leader of the family. Some of the reasons for this are to alleviate family needs, economic needs, husbands without a steady job, dominant environmental factors, many family burdens, filling leisure time, and women's willingness to work. These reasons are driven by two major factors: internal and external factors. The implications are only positive because in reality, it does not create conflict within the family. On the contrary, families in the Muslim community in Sikayu Village are categorized as harmonious families.