My household doesn't need this, but my partner wants to work. There's a lot of situations where this is the case. A large percentage of women want to be in the workforce and are not forced to be there.
I think it's very natural to want to work. Women having the option to work is a wonderful thing, and we need to keep making progress towards equal opportunities and pay.
I think a good amount of the problem then became, these new normal double income households then decided they also wanted children. So we slowly convinced ourselves that both parents can work while raising children, which doesn't really work. Your child ends up being raised by day care.
It's a good example of having your cake and eating it too.
AFAIK, studies and history demonstrated opposite to be true, if there is an opportunity not to work and lead comfortable life, most people choose not to work.
If you have enough of a guarantee of leading a comfortable life (e.g. you inherit a large fortune), then sure.
But for most people, leaving their professional career is hardly reversible in the long term, and means becoming economically dependent on their partner. Which only works if the couple stays together (and the partner keeps their job).
I hope I can stay together with my partner for life but even if so, I wouldn't be too comfortable if she left her career and became economically dependent: what if I die early, for example? A career is a hedge against adversity.
Even staying together, if a big economic crisis comes, with two jobs it's easier that at least one of us will keep their income than with one.
