Zitatform

Brega, Carla, Mara A. Yerkes & Marc Grau-Grau (2026): Fathers Combining Work and Care: Flexible Work Arrangements and Paternal Involvement Across Financial Situations. In: Work, Employment and Society, Jg. 40, H. 2, S. 225-249. DOI:10.1177/09500170251386322

Abstract

"Flexible work arrangements significantly impact childcare divisions among dual-earner parents, yet few studies address their impact on fathers as primary caregivers. This article explores the relationship between fathers’ ability to work flexibly and their share of childcare responsibility across financial situations. A capabilities perspective is applied to better understand why fathers’ childcare aspirations may not align with what they are capable of in practice. Using 2021 survey data on fathers (n = 493) and mothers (n = 472) of young children in different-sex partnerships from four European countries, multinomial logistic regressions are estimated to predict childcare responsibility. Findings suggest fathers’ spatial flexibility (working from home) increases their likelihood of being the person primarily responsible for childcare, whereas temporal flexibility (varying the start/end times of the working day) does not. Economic conditions influence these dynamics, with financially strained fathers benefiting most from spatial flexibility." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Brega, Carla (2026): Flexible Work Arrangements and Occupational Class: Fathers Navigating Childcare Responsibilities. In: Gender, work & organization, Jg. 33, H. 3, S. 1053-1064. DOI:10.1111/gwao.70111

Abstract

"When using flexible work arrangements for caregiving, fathers risk deviating from both social expectations of breadwinning and ideal worker standards, yet implications of this divergence across different occupational classes remain unclear. Using 40 semi-structured interviews with fathers from the Netherlands, Slovenia, Spain, and the UK, this study explores and compares the negotiated use of flexible working arrangements (FWAs) for care among managerial-professional fathers and fathers in routine white-collar and blue-collar occupations. Employing abductive analysis within a constructivist grounded theory framework, the article delves into how fathers from different work-related backgrounds navigate the tension between their paid work (in)flexibility and their childcare involvement. Results show evidence of occupational-class differences in two key areas: Varying degrees of access to and use of FWAs for care; and navigating work and family dedication, including how fathers deal with competing commitments and what using flexibility implies for the tension between expectations of being both involved fathers and dedicated workers. At a higher level of abstraction, these contribute to theorization of a class-based double bind of fatherhood and flexibility, providing a much-needed view of how working fathers navigate the complexities of (gendered) organizational structures. Finally, implications are discussed, including organizational support addressing occupational-class barriers to FWAs." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Costa-Ramón, Ana, Michaela Slotwinski, Ursina Schaede & Anne Ardila Brenøe (2026): (Not) Thinking About the Future: Financial Information and Maternal Labor Supply. In: The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Jg. 141, H. 2, S. 1335-1382. DOI:10.1093/qje/qjag003

Abstract

"Does information about the long-run financial costs of reduced labor supply increase mothers ’ working hours? We document descriptively that long-term financial factors are not top of mind when mothers decide on their employment level. Moreover, a substantial share of women holds overly optimistic expectations about pension receipt and wage growth under part-time work. In a large-scale field experiment in Switzerland, we randomly assign mothers working part-time as teachers to receive objective information about the long-run costs of reduced labor supply. The treatment increases both demand for financial information and future labor supply plans, in particular among women who underestimate the costs of part-time work. Leveraging linked employer administrative data one year post-intervention, we find that this group of mothers increases working hours by 7 percent. These findings underscore that policies reducing information frictions in labor supply decisions may help address remaining gender gaps in the labor market." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Cruz, João, Amélia Bastos, Sara Falcão Casaca & Isabel Proença (2026): Gender pay gap trends across STEM fields: an empirical analysis. In: The international journal of sociology and social policy, Jg. 46, H. 3-4, S. 426-447. DOI:10.1108/ijssp-02-2025-0090

Abstract

"Purpose: This paper analyses the gender pay gap (GPG) in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) in Portugal over the past decade, utilising official national earnings data. Design/methodology/approach: A decomposition method is applied to estimate the explained and unexplained components of the GPG both at the mean and across the distribution quartiles of national earnings. This methodology can also be applied to other sectors or countries, providing robust statistical and econometric results relating to the GPG. Findings: The results show that the GPG varies heterogeneously across STEM fields. In occupations relating to Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), which are included in STEM, the GPG has been widening in recent years, in contrast to the overall trend in the labour force. Originality/value: The GPG in STEM is under-researched, with existing literature indicating a structural gap in these occupations. Understanding this GPG is essential for its reduction and for maximising human capital, which is vital for social and economic growth. This article aims to contribute to the discussion on this topic and offers potential policy recommendations." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Emerald Group) ((en))

Zitatform

Echeverría, Lucía, J. Ignacio Giménez-Nadal & José Alberto Molina (2026): Commuting in dual-earner households: international gender differences with time use surveys. In: Review of Economics of the Household, Jg. 24, H. 1, S. 303-325. DOI:10.1007/s11150-024-09726-5

Abstract

"Prior studies show men commute longer than women, often due to household responsibilities. However, research on commuting differences within couples is limited. This study examines gender gaps in commuting times and mode choices among dual-earner couples in Spain, Italy, South Korea, and the UK. Using Ordinary Least Squares regressions, we find that the presence of children significantly increases gender gaps in commuting times in Italy and the UK, supporting the household responsibility hypothesis. Conversely, no significant link between children and gender gaps is observed in Spain and Korea. Additionally, children’s presence affects commuting mode choices in Italy across all modes, and in Korea for public transit only, with Italian women showing the most changes in commuting mode when children are present." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

González, Libertad, Sergi Jiménez-Martín, Natalia Nollenberger & Judit Vall Castello (2026): The Effect of Access to Legal Abortion on Fertility, Marriage, and Long-term Outcomes for Women. In: The Economic Journal, Jg. 136, H. 674, S. 440-467. DOI:10.1093/ej/ueaf054

Abstract

"We evaluate the short- and long-term effects for women of access to legal, subsidized abortion. We find evidence that the legalization of abortion in Spain in 1985 led to an immediate decrease in births, more pronounced for younger women in provinces with a higher supply of abortion services. Affected women were more likely to graduate from high school, less likely to marry young, less likely to divorce in the long-term, and reported higher life satisfaction as adults. We find at most small reductions in completed fertility, while we do not find meaningful effects on labour market outcomes in the long run." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Hieda, Takeshi (2026): Beyond left and right: Socio-cultural determinants of parenting leave policy in advanced democracies. In: Journal of European Social Policy. DOI:10.1177/09589287251410874

Abstract

"This study examines the political determinants of parenting leave policy across 21 OECD countries from 1970 to 2021. While prior research has linked parenting leave expansion to social democratic and Christian democratic governments, this paper argues that party positions in the two-dimensional ideological space—socio-economic left–right and socio-cultural libertarian–authoritarian—better explain policy preferences. Using mixed-effects ordered logit models, the analysis reveals that socio-cultural rather than socio-economic positions drive parenting leave expansion. Governments with libertarian socio-cultural orientations are more likely to extend paid maternity, paternity, and parental leave for both mothers and fathers. These findings remain robust even when controlling for party family, indicating that the influence of Christian democratic and social democratic governments stems from their shifts towards libertarian positions. The study provides new insights into the partisan determinants of parenting leave policy, highlighting the role of socio-cultural competition in shaping welfare state transformations in post-industrial democracies." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Sofka, Wolfgang, Christoph Grimpe & Ulrich Kaiser (2026): Gender wage discrimination and the attractiveness of foreign MNC subsidiaries as employers for women. In: Journal of International Business Studies, Jg. 57, H. 2, S. 173-196. DOI:10.1057/s41267-025-00811-0

Abstract

"The article explores the issue of gender wage discrimination, where women are often paid less than men for the same work. This problem is rooted in societal norms and beliefs about gender roles. The study focuses on how foreign multinational corporations (MNCs) might offer better opportunities for rooted discrimination in domestic firms. It investigates whether women who experience gender wage discrimination are more likely to seek employment with foreign MNCs, which might offer fairer wages and more opportunities for advancement. This article uses data from Denmark, covering the years 2002 to 2015, to analyze the job changes of 165,624 female professionals and managers. The researchers use the Kitagawa–Oaxaca–Blinder decomposition to measure gender wage discrimination. This method helps separate the wage gap into parts that can be explained by differences in skills and experience and parts that cannot, indicating discrimination. The study also considers factors like the productivity of domestic firms compared to foreign MNCs and the presence of women in management roles within these companies. The authors conduct interviews with women who have experienced wage discrimination to understand their motivations and preferences when choosing employers. The study finds that women who face higher levels of gender wage discrimination in domestic firms are more likely to seek employment with foreign MNCs. This tendency is stronger in labor markets where foreign MNCs have more women in management roles, signaling a deviation from male-dominated norms. The research finds that foreign MNCs can become attractive employers for women seeking to escape wage discrimination. The authors conclude that understanding women’s preferences and the conditions under which they consider foreign MNCs as attractive employers can help address the challenge of gender-based economic inequality. Future implications include the potential for foreign MNCs to play a significant role in promoting gender equality in the workplace by offering fairer wages and more opportunities for women.This text was initially drafted using artificial intelligence, then reviewed by the author(s) to ensure accuracy." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Stertz, Anna M. & Ronit Waismel-Manor (2026): Take it or leave it: how maternal leave duration affects societal perceptions of women in Germany and Israel. In: Community, work & family, S. 1-9. DOI:10.1080/13668803.2026.2621075

Abstract

"This research investigates how the duration of parental leave taken by working mothers influences ‘ideal worker’ and ‘good mother’ norms perceptions in two distinct cultural and policy contexts: Germany (N\u2009=\u2009262; main activity: 65.9% university students, 26.7% paid work) and Israel (N\u2009=\u2009504; main activity: 100% university students, of whom 79.0% also engaged in paid work). In experimental online studies, participants evaluated a fictitious mother based on a vignette. Leave length was experimentally manipulated across four conditions: 4, 6, 12, and 36 months (the latter only in Germany). The results yielded similar trends in both countries. Mothers are more likely to be viewed as better parents if they take the longest leave offered, and as better workers if they take short periods of leave. Nevertheless, our results show that in both countries, the decision to take parental leave of any given length does not substantially harm evaluations toward working mothers." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Strazdins, Lyndall, Tinh Doan, Liana Leach, Jianghong Li, Matthias Pollmann-Schult & Till Kaiser (2026): Ceilings: Gender Inequality in Hours, Earnings and Health. In: Social indicators research, Jg. 182. DOI:10.1007/s11205-026-03820-0

Abstract

"One reason gender earning gaps persist is that well-paid jobs presume long work hours, and these are incompatible with family care. Long hours also harm health, and the risks may increase for workers with care and domestic workloads, adding a gendered health penalty. Using representative, longitudinal data from Australia and Germany (144,430–153,659 observations for HILDA and SOEP surveys, respectively, 2002–2022), we model the interconnections between hours and health among men and women aged 25–64 years. Our models include hours spent on care and domestic work, to estimate the points at which working more gains earnings but incurs risks for health and how this may differ by gender. The results show that average health ceilings mirror standard work hours (38 to 43 h per week) in both countries, but this masks wide gender differences. Gender stratified models reveal that long work hours are relatively less harmful for men compared to women, and as work hours lengthen, the penalty to women’s physical and mental health increases. We further show how these differential health harms are linked to extra time spent on family care and domestic work. Our study extends theory on how gender inequality is maintained in organisations and in the labour market, and the need for policy action to limit long work hours." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

-Wysocka, Katarzyna Bech & Magdalena Smyk (2025): Heuristics and Signals: Experimental Evidence on Information and Wage Discrimination. (GRAPE working paper / Group for Research in Applied Economics 106), Warszawa, 27 S.

Abstract

"Statistical discrimination theory explains wage differences between demographic groups by referring to differences in group averages or heuristic-based decision-making. This study investigates whether providing employers with accurate information about individual productivity affects wage-setting practices. We replicate a labor market scenario in which employers determine wages based on perceived productivity differences between male and female workers. Our experimental findings suggest that statistical discrimination influences initial wage decisions, but access to individual performance data reduces reliance on group-based heuristics. The dominant strategy when the actual information about performance is to share the resources according to contribution. We observe that in tasks where women statistically outperform, higher-scoring individuals tend to receive slightly less than their proportional contribution, whereas in tasks where men perform better, they tend to receive slightly more than their contribution. Furthermore, we show that with only statistical information, significant gender-based wage discrimination aligned with performance stereotypes occurs, but there is no gender discrimination under full information about performance. Our results contribute to the broader discussion on labour market inequalities and approaches to reducing statistical discrimination." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Acero, Isabel & Nuria Alcalde (2025): Gender pay gap among non-executive directors in Spanish boards. In: Applied Economics, S. 1-13. DOI:10.1080/00036846.2025.2499209

Abstract

"This study focuses on the existence or not of a gender pay gap (GPG) among non-executive directors (NEDs) in Spanish boards. For this purpose, we used a sample covering 4,018 positions/year for NEDs in 57 Spanish listed firms over a 10-year period (2013–2022). The results obtained suggest that, controlling for individual characteristics of the directors, the type of position held as well as the features of the company and its corporate governance system, female NEDs receive approximately 11% less remuneration than their male counterparts. Therefore, our findings do not support the idea that female directors are a scarce resource that firms compete for and reward. The results also highlight the need to differentiate by categories of directors when analysing the GPG in the board. In fact, we find that the GPG is higher for proprietary directors (around 18%) than for independent directors (around 6%). In terms of practical implications, our results may be of interest to policy-makers who are considering gender equity policies to break the glass ceiling." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Acosta-Ballesteros, Juan, María Del Pilar Osorno-Del Rosal & Olga María Rodríguez-Rodríguez (2025): Gender occupational segregation: a new approach to quantifying the effect of educational segregation. In: Applied Economics, Jg. 57, H. 57, S. 9713-9727. DOI:10.1080/00036846.2024.2423067

Abstract

"This article analyses the impact of educational segregation on the gender gap in the probability of working in a gendered or gender-balanced occupation, which is our measure of occupational segregation. Specifically, our methodology allows quantifying two different effects of education on this gap: one due to girls and boys choosing different educational options (presorting), and the other due to men and women with the same education entering the same or different occupations (postsorting). Using a sample of university graduates from Spain, a country with a highly segregated labor market, we conclude that the gender composition of education and occupation are strongly related. However, the greater presence of women in female-dominated jobs is not only due to them choosing female-dominated degrees, but also due to many women from gender-balanced, and even some from male-dominated programs, working in female-dominated occupations. Thus, reducing educational segregation does not seem to be enough to fight against occupational segregation. It is also necessary to guarantee that men and women enjoy the same opportunities in the labour market, removing discrimination practices, and to ensure that both, workers and employers, do not make decisions based on gender role expectations or stereotypes." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Bajka, Scherwin M., Benita Combet, Patrick Emmenegger & Sabine Seufert (2025): Skill requirements versus workplace characteristics: exploring the drivers of occupational gender segregation. In: Socio-economic review, Jg. 23, H. 4, S. 2065-2086. DOI:10.1093/ser/mwaf034

Abstract

"What role do skill requirements play in gendered occupational preferences? Previous research has emphasized workplace characteristics such as salaries and family-friendly work hours. Less attention has been paid to skill requirements, even though they are an important part of job descriptions and serve as reference points for individuals’ assessment of their suitability for occupations. Using a choice experiment among Swiss adolescents who are in the process of choosing their vocational training occupation, this article demonstrates that women and men have surprisingly similar preferences for workplace characteristics. In contrast, skill requirements are better predictors of gender differences in occupational preferences. We find that technical skills are critical in explaining gendered occupational preferences, with occupations that rely more heavily on new technologies attracting fewer women. At the same time, both genders prefer occupations that emphasize social interactions, suggesting that the prominent ‘people’ versus ‘things’ distinction does not adequately capture gendered occupational preferences." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Berlanda, Andrea, Elisabetta Lodigiani & Lorenzo Rocco (2025): Immigration and Adult Children's Care for Elderly Parents: Evidence from Western Europe. (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 17984), Bonn, 41 S.

Abstract

"In this paper, we use the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), complemented with register data on the share of the foreign population in the European regions, to examine the effects of migration on the level of informal care provided by children to their senior parents. Our main results show that migration decreases informal care among daughters with a university degree, while it increases the provision of informal care among daughters with low-to-medium levels of education. Viceversa, migration has practically no effect on sons’ care provision who remain little involved in care activities. These results depend on the combination of two supply effects. First, migration increases the supply of domestic and personal services, making formal care more affordable and available. Second, as immigrants compete with low-to-medium-educated native workers, while improve the labor market opportunities of the better educated, the supply of informal care can increase among the less educated daughters and decrease among the more educated." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Bover, Olympia, Nezih Guner, Yuliya Kulikova, Alessandro Ruggieri & Carlos Sanz (2025): Family-Friendly Policies and Fertility: What Firms Have to Do With It? (CEPR discussion paper / Centre for Economic Policy Research 20411), London, 67 S.

Abstract

"Family-friendly policies aim to help women balance work and family life, encouraging them to participate in the labor market. How effective are such policies in increasing fertility? We answer this question using a search model of the labor market where firms make hiring, promotion, and firing decisions, taking into account how these decisions affect workers' fertility incentives and labor force participation decisions. We estimate the model using administrative data from Spain, a country with very low fertility and a highly regulated labor market. We use the model to study family-friendly policies and demonstrate that firms' reactions result in a trade-off: policies that increase fertility reduce women's participation in the labor market and lower their lifetime earnings." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Broadway, Barbara & Guyonne Kalb (2025): The Effect of Separation on Poverty and Employment. (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 18343), Bonn, 75 S.

Abstract

"Using 2001–2021 HILDA survey data, this paper estimates how separation or divorce affects poverty and employment trajectories over five years after the event. A difference-in-differences approach compares separated individuals with couples who stayed together, accounting for recent and long-term labour market history prior to separation. Women with preschool children face a 19.9 percentage point higher poverty risk in the first year, which fades within three years. Women with older or no children experience smaller but longer-lasting poverty increases. Pre-separation employment strongly moderates effects: non-employed women face much higher poverty risks than employed women who have similar poverty risks to men. Men's poverty impacts are smaller and shorter-lived. Separation barely changes women's employment but slightly reduces men's employment, especially those with preschool children." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Caparrós Ruiz, Antonio (2025): Gender wage gap among highly educated workers: some evidence from Spain. In: Journal of Economic Studies, Jg. 52, H. 6, S. 1171-1188. DOI:10.1108/jes-06-2024-0371

Abstract

"Purpose: The study aims to estimate wage models controlled for sample selection bias and apply the traditional Blinder–Oaxaca decomposition to examine the genderwage gap. Design/methodology/Approach: This research provides new evidence concerning the drivers of the gender pay gap for highly educated workers in Spain. Findings: The results show the existence of empirical evidence about the presence of the gender wage gap among tertiary-educated workers. An interesting conclusion is that holding a master’s degree hasa positive impact since it diminishes the unexplained component of the gender pay gap. Research limitations/implications: The survey used only analyses the labor insertion of tertiary-educated workers and its temporal scope does not allow us to examine the evolution of the gender wage gap throughout their careers. Social implications: The findings indicate that there is room for the implementation of policies aimed at diminishing gender inequality in the labor market even for highly educated workers, which could complement the current Spanish labor legislation regulating the gender pay gap in firms. Originality/value: This paper bridges two bodies of the economic literature: human capital returns and the gender wage gap. The data used represent a contribution to the economic literature." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Emerald Group) ((en))

Zitatform

Cobb-Clark, Deborah A., Tung Dang & Hayley Fisher (2025): Daycare Accessibility and Maternal Labor Market Outcomes: Do Quality Ratings Matter? (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 18300), Bonn, 43 S.

Abstract

"Using administrative data on Australian daycare centers and a triple-difference design, we examine the impact of daycare availability and quality ratings on childcare utilization and mothers' labor market outcomes. We document a substantial positive impact of daycare availability and higher quality ratings on formal care usage and mothers' employment and earnings. The effect of quality ratings is particularly pronounced among high-income, more-educated, and first-time mothers, whose perceptions of local daycare quality are most responsive to changes in ratings. Our findings underscore the important roles of childcare quality, in addition to accessibility, in shaping families' childcare choices and mothers' employment decisions." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Doan, Tinh, Liana Leach & Lyndall Strazdins (2025): The Economic Costs of Men's Long Work Hours for Women: Evidence on the Gender Wage Earnings Gap from Australia and Germany. In: Social indicators research, Jg. 179, H. 2, S. 1073-1100. DOI:10.1007/s11205-025-03647-1

Abstract

"Women’s earnings inequality persists, despite policy efforts to reduce discrimination and gender bias. Gender gaps in earnings, however, are a function of hours worked as well as wage rates, and reflect gendered short and long work hour patterns. Within households, how partners exchange time is a crucial driver of hours worked yet this is rarely incorporated into analysis of gender earning gaps. Using a two-stage instrumental variable Oaxaca- Blinder decomposition we model earnings gaps as a function of own and partner hours on and off the job. This enables us to estimate what the gender gap in hours and earnings would look like without a gendered time ‘subsidy’ or ‘borrowing’ in the home. We studied dual-earner households in two countries, Australia and Germany, finding a weekly earnings gap of AUD$536 and €400. This was accompanied by a weekly work hour gap of 12 h in Australia and 13 in Germany. When we accounted for the influence of partner’s hours (paid or unpaid), work hour gaps reduce to 5.1 h in Australian households (58% reduction), and to 6.9 h in German (47% reduction). In effect, women would work 3 to 4 h more each week, and men’s long hours would reduce, narrowing the gender earnings gaps by 43% in Australia and 25% in Germany, if time ‘subsidies’ in the home were eliminated. Our analysis reveals the economic cost to women long work hour cultures impose." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

Ehab, Maye & Fatma Mossad (2025): Informal employment in the health sector: Examining gender disparities. In: International Journal of Social Welfare, Jg. 34, H. 2, 2024-09-20. DOI:10.1111/ijsw.12704

Abstract

"This paper investigates the association between informal employment as a form of non-standard employment and the prevalence of in-work poverty for women in the health sector. We measured in-work poverty using a binary indicator that provides information on whether an individual has earnings above or below the low earnings threshold. The indicator takes into account household size and whether other household members are also in paid work. Using data from the Egypt Labor Market Panel Survey for the years 2012 and 2018 and logit models, we found that being employed within the health sector increased the likelihood of in-work poverty among non-standard employees, both men and women. However, higher risks of in-work poverty were witnessed among women working informally in the health sector compared to other sectors. This increased risk was particularly observed when comparing non-standard employment in the health sector to non-standard employment in non-health sectors. Furthermore, marital status plays a critical role in economic wellbeing, with never-married women being more susceptible to in-work poverty compared to ever-married women." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Wiley) ((en))

Zitatform

Escobedo, Anna & Peter Moss (2025): Parenting leave and gender in Spain: terminology, rationale and design. In: Community, work & family, S. 1-11. DOI:10.1080/13668803.2025.2481861

Abstract

"This Policy Note examines moves to ‘de-gender’ parenting leaves, focusing on the case of Spain, where recent policy developments have replaced ‘Maternity leave’ and ‘Paternity leave’ with gender-neutral terms, and equalised fathers’ to mothers’ formal entitlements for these leaves at birth, instead of moving the focus to develop paid Parental leave. The rationale for and early results of change are considered, before adding examples of changes from other countries, some of which have taken a different approach to gender neutrality based on more extended periods of paid Parental leave accessible and affordable for both parents. Some of the issues raised by such developments are discussed, including whether moves to de-gender leave facilitate or hinder gender equality, the balance between rigidity and flexibility in leave policies, and the representation of children’s interests in leave policy. The conclusion of thePolicy Note is that gender neutral terminology, by itself, is insufficient and that leave policy design is necessary to incentivise more equal use and more equal impacts on parents, though even then the fundamental question remains: does re-design require equal treatment in all respects or do biological differences justify some differences in leave policy?" (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Farré, Lídia, Libertad González, Claudia Hupkau & Jenifer Ruiz-Valenzuela (2025): Paternity leave in Spain. In: SERIEs, Jg. 16, H. 3-4, S. 749-784. DOI:10.1007/s13209-025-00320-1

Abstract

"Between 2017 and 2021, Spain progressively extended paternity leave from 2 to 16 weeks, equalizing it with maternity leave and introducing mandatory weeks. A 2018 reform also allowed fathers to split their leave. Using administrative data on all leave permits since 2016, we analyze trends in paternity leave take-up. Following the introduction of mandatory leave, the share of fathers taking leave increased by around 20 percentage points, and most now use nearly the full entitlement. The share opting to split leave has steadily grown, surpassing 50% by 2023. However, this behavior shows marked heterogeneity: While overall uptake is uniform across groups, leave-splitting is far more common among higher-income fathers and more prevalent in certain sectors. Spain’s experience illustrates how policy design can significantly increase paternity leave usage, though workplace flexibility and income-related constraints shape how fathers use that time." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Farré, Lídia, Libertad González, Claudia Hupkau & Jenifer Ruiz-Valenzuela (2025): Paternity leave in Spain. (CEP discussion paper / Centre for Economic Performance 2111), London, 47 S.

Abstract

"Between 2017 and 2021, Spain progressively extended paternity leave from 2 to 16 weeks, equalizing it with maternity leave and introducing mandatory weeks. A 2018 reform also allowed fathers to split their leave. Using administrative data on all leave permits since 2016, we analyze trends in paternity leave take-up. Following the introduction of mandatory leave, the share of fathers taking leave increased by around 20 percentage points, and most now use nearly the full entitlement. The share opting to split leave has steadily grown, surpassing 50% by 2023. However, this behavior shows marked heterogeneity: while overall uptake is uniform across groups, leave-splitting is far more common among higher-income fathers and more prevalent in certain sectors. Spain’s experience illustrates how policy design can significantly increase paternity leave usage, though workplace flexibility and income-related constraints shape how fathers use that time." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Fernández-Cornejo, José Andrés, Cristina Castellanos-Serrano, Eva Del Pozo-García, Maite Palomo-Vadillo, Juan Ignacio Cáceres-Ruiz & Lorenzo Escot (2025): Do I feel entitled to it? Caring dads after the equalization of parental leave in Spain. In: The international journal of sociology and social policy, Jg. 45, H. 3/4, S. 346-364. DOI:10.1108/ijssp-08-2024-0406

Abstract

"Purpose: In January 2021, Spanish paid parental leave for fathers was fully equated with that for mothers. Is this facilitating working fathers developing an identity of caring fathers? Design/methodology/approach We conducted qualitative research based on 31 interviews with heterosexual fathers residing in Spain, who had a child from January 1, 2021 onwards, who cohabited with the baby ’s mother, and who were salaried. We also added two mothers with the same characteristics and seven human resources managers from large companies. Findings There has been a rapid acceptance and normalization of the use of these new equalized leaves. For many fathers this has been accompanied by the experience of a greater sense of “being legitimized ” to engage in caregiving. The intensity of this process could be subject to two opposing forces. One in favor, especially when fathers care alone for as long as possible; and one against, when fathers assume the role of the mother’s helper and when the support of significant and relevant others is lacking in several domains, including the work place. Social implications Whether this ambivalence is resolved in favor of advancement could depend on how successful public policy is. Reforms of parental leave systems should encourage men to take on single-handed care, and companies should be encouraged to become more aware of the need for co-responsibility between fathers and mothers in childcare. Originality/value Spain now has one of the most gender-equal parental leave systems in the world. It is important to know what meaning new fathers are giving to this advance and to what extent this is facilitating the emergence of a caregiving masculinity." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © EmeraldGroup) ((en))

Zitatform

Galego, Aurora (2025): Recent trends in the gender wage gap in Portugal: a distributional analysis. In: Applied Economics Letters, Jg. 32, H. 3, S. 369-372. DOI:10.1080/13504851.2023.2270223

Abstract

"Portugal displays a persistent gender wage gap which increased during the 2010-2013 economic crisis. This paper aims at examining the developments in the gender wage gap for the private sector from 2009 to 2019 using a decomposition across the wage distribution. We conclude that the gap has decreased at the lower and middle quantiles but remains quite wide at the top. The largest part of the gap stems from the structure effect, which suggests persistent discrimination." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Gangl, Selina & Martin Huber (2025): From homemakers to breadwinners? How mandatory kindergarten affects maternal labor market outcomes. In: Journal of Population Economics, Jg. 38, H. 2. DOI:10.1007/s00148-025-01099-y

Abstract

"The majority of Swiss children attend mandatory and cost-free kindergarten at age four. We examine the effect of this policy on maternal labor market outcomes. Using administrative data from Switzerland, we exploit the birthday cut-off for kindergarten entry in the same or in the following year and apply a non-parametric regression discontinuity design (RDD). We find that mandatory kindergarten has a statistically significant positive effect on the labour market attachment of previously non-employed mothers, increasing their employment probability by 4 percentage points. In contrast, there are no significant effects on other groups or in the total sample of mothers." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

García‐Mainar, Inmaculada, Pablo García‐Ruiz & Victor M. Montuenga (2025): Gender and Occupational Prestige. Testing the Devaluation Theory in Spain. In: Gender and Occupational Prestige. Testing the Devaluation Theory in Spain, Jg. 32, H. 5, S. 1982-1993. DOI:10.1111/gwao.13262

Abstract

"The devaluation theory, that is, that occupations where women predominate become less socially valued than those where men are in the majority, has not reached a unanimous conclusion in the empirical literature, especially when prestige is used as an indicator of the valuation of the occupation. The changing economic and social circumstances may influence the fulfillment of this hypothesis over time. Using regression analysis, this article tests the adequacy of the devaluation theory in the Spanish labor market at two points in time, 1991 and 2013. Previously, it also describes and analyzes whether the ordering of occupations has changed substantially in this period, using two different comparable scales. The results confirm a weakening in the support of the devaluation theory such that gender segregation of occupations does not necessarily imply differences in their social valuation. This result can be attributed to (i) the increase of prestige in some feminized occupations and (ii) the increase of women's participation in prestigious occupations." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

Zitatform

Gasior, Katrin, Silvia Avram & Daria Popova (2025): Invisible gaps: Women’s individual poverty risks and the gendered failings of the adult worker model. In: Economic Systems. DOI:10.1016/j.ecosys.2025.101363

Abstract

"Since the early 2000s, welfare states in Europe have shifted their primary focus from providing social protection against labour market risks to the activation of all individuals into employment. As a way to limit poverty risks, this strategy ignores the ‘care penalties’ many women face in the labour market. Official poverty statistics ignore intrahousehold inequalities in resource allocation, thereby possibly overestimating the economic resources of women. This study contributes to the literature on the gendered consequences of welfare policies by estimating poverty risks for men and women using individualised incomes and assessing the extent to which observed gender gaps in poverty risk can be linked to the adult worker model. Additionally, the role played by taxes and social transfers in mitigating the gender gap in individual poverty risk is examined. Results show that only around one third of women in Europe fit the standard full-time, year-round employment model. Inactive and unemployed women have particularly high individual poverty risks, but even women who work fulltime and are continuously employed are more prone to poverty than men, highlighting the role of gender pay gaps. Social transfers cushion some of the gendered gap in poverty risk, while direct taxes and social insurance contributions have a disequalizing effect at the bottom of income distribution, especially for workers in atypical employment." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2025 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.) ((en))

Zitatform

Joecks, Jasmin, Anna Kurowska, Kerstin Pull & Pia Schober (2025): Multidimensional gender ideologies: How do they relate to work-family arrangements of mothers with dependent children in Poland and western Germany? In: International Journal of Comparative Sociology, Jg. 66, H. 4, S. 633-659. DOI:10.1177/00207152241293463

Abstract

"This study uses a multidimensional approach to identify gender ideologies and investigate their association with work-family arrangements among mothers of dependent children in Poland and western Germany. Based on data from the Generations and Gender Survey, we apply ordinal latent class analysis and identify five gender ideology classes: (1) traditional, (2) intensive parenting, (3) ambivalent, (4) moderately egalitarian, and (5) strongly egalitarian. In both countries, we find that the intensive parenting class resembles the traditional class in terms of lower maternal employment, a more gendered division of housework and childcare, and a smaller probability of using formal childcare, whereas the ambivalent respondents mostly practice work-care arrangements that are similar to the moderately egalitarian class. With respect to informal care, mothers who identify with strong egalitarianism significantly differ from the traditional class in western Germany, but they do not in Poland—thus highlighting the role of the cultural and institutional context in explaining the complex links between mothers’ gender ideologies and work-family arrangements." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Love, Jasmine, Katrina A. Lambert, Amanda Cooklin, Stacey Hokke, Liana Leach, Rebecca Giallo, Tinh Doan, Helen Findley & Jodi Oakman (2025): Mismatch between actual and preferred number of days working from home. Parental status, work-family conflict, and stress. In: Community, work & family, S. 1-22. DOI:10.1080/13668803.2025.2584084

Abstract

"This study assessed whether the mismatch between Australian employees actual and preferred number of days working from home is associated with work-to-family conflict, family-to-work conflict and four indicators of stress (burnout, general stress, somatic stress, cognitive stress). Whether these relationships were moderated by parental status was examined. Employees working from home completed online surveys in May 2021 (n = 451), November 2021 (n = 358) and May 2022 (n = 320). The three waves of data were pooled (337 non-parents, 179 parents) and generalised mixed effects models were used. For parents, a mismatch between actual and preferred amount of working from home, particularly working from home less than preferred, was associated with increased work-to-family conflict (but not family-to-work conflict). Working from home more than preferred was associated with increases in all four aspects of stress for parents and non-parents. Working from home less than preferred was associated with increased burnout among non-parents and decreased general stress and cognitive stress among parents. Findings suggest there is no one-size-fits-all approach in how much working from home is optimal, but a mismatch in work from home preferences can have adverse associations with employee wellbeing, particularly work-to-family conflict for parents. Work from home arrangements should be tailored to individual needs." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Lütolf, Meret (2025): The Balancing Act of Working Mothers and Caring Fathers. Impact of Family Policy on Egalitarianism in Families in Western Democracies. Wiesbaden: Springer VS, 220 S. DOI:10.1007/978-3-658-47716-5

Abstract

"This Open-Access-book explores how egalitarian parental leave policies can support a more balanced division of paid work and caregiving. Introducing a novel analysis grid and a unique dataset, Meret Lütolf examines parental leave policies in five countries – United States, Switzerland, Germany, Finland, and Sweden – revealing how fully paid, non-transferable leave can promote gender-neutral caregiving roles. Key findings highlight the connection between longer paternal leave and a more equal distribution of unpaid work, along with fathers’ willingness to reduce paid work hours in favor of caregiving. By combining multiple research methods, the study links policy intentions with real-life outcomes and identifies feasible reforms, including full wage replacement, that can enhance egalitarianism without raising policy costs. Offering valuable insights for policymakers, researchers, and advocates, this book demonstrates how parental leave policies can contribute to more equal family dynamics and address broader gender inequalities in society." (Publisher information, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Narazani, Edlira, Ana Agúndez García, Michael Christl & Francesco Figari (2025): Increased childcare to promote mothers’ employment in selected EU countries. In: Journal of Policy Modeling, Jg. 47, H. 3, S. 492-511. DOI:10.1016/j.jpolmod.2024.12.005

Abstract

"This paper provides evidence of the maternal labor supply effects of increased childcare availability in a set of EU Member States based on the behavioural microsimulation model EUROLAB, that uses a labor market equilibrium model to encompass the demand side. Our findings indicate that achieving higher childcare participation rates would result in an overall increase in the labor supply of mothers with children below 3, with variations across countries. Furthermore, the labor demand side moderates slightly the final employment effect, but employment is still expected to rise substantially vis a vis the baseline situation. In countries like Hungary and Poland, where formal childcare and female labor participation are low, the expected impact on employment is likely to be higher. Conversely, in countries like Portugal the changes in employment are more modest. These findings indicate that universal, one-size-fits-all targets may not be efficient in the EU, given significant variations across countries in terms of labor market participation and childcare systems. Thus, tailored childcare policies that account for country-specific contexts within the EU are recommended." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2025 The Society for Policy Modeling. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.) ((en))

Zitatform

Nishimura, Tomo (2025): Effects of fathers’ nonstandard work schedules on childcare time. In: Community, work & family, S. 1-21. DOI:10.1080/13668803.2025.2549785

Zitatform

Noa, Israeli, Gelbgiser Dafna & Stier Haya (2025): The gendered division of paid labour among families of children with disabilities: a comparative approach. In: European Societies, S. 1-45. DOI:10.1162/euso.a.83

Abstract

"Having a child with a disability intensifies work-family conflict due to the additional caregiving demands. Prior research suggests that this conflict reinforces more traditional patterns of labour division in families of children with disabilities (FOCD), contributing to a well-documented ‘disability penalty’, where mothers' relative contribution to paid labour is lower in FOCD than in other families. Yet, it remains unclear whether and how the disability penalty is shaped by family and FOCD-specific policies. We shed light on this association by analysing data from the 2021 European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EUSILC) data from four European countries that differ in their family policies frameworks: Finland, the Netherlands, Spain, and Poland. Our findings suggest that the interplay of family policies and prevailing gender norms may shape the extent of the disability penalty, with crossnational variations in the differences between FOCD and non-FOCD in their gendered division of paid labour. A significant disability penalty is observed only in Poland, a country marked by minimal, means-tested support for FOCD alongside expectations of full-time employment for both parents. In contrast, in Finland, Spain, and the Netherlands, the disability penalty is either negligible or statistically non-significant. These results highlight the importance of a comparative perspective in understanding the disability penalty and highlights the role of family policies in shaping labour market outcomes for FOCD. Findings offer valuable insights for policymakers addressing the challenges faced by FOCD across Europe." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Ong, Pinchuan (2025): The Effect of Child Support on Fathers’ Labor Supply. In: Journal of labor economics. DOI:10.1086/740192

Abstract

"Child support frequently increases with the noncustodial fathers’ incomes. I study the effect on their work incentives. For identification, I exploit the end of child support when the children involved reach emancipation age. Empirically, child support paid drops to near zero on emancipation; fathers correspondingly increase their work hours and annual earnings. Formally, each 10 percentage point increase in the child support rate leads to an 8–11 percent decrease in labor supply conditional on working. I find weaker extensive margin responses. In a structural model, I map these estimates to the intertemporal elasticity of labor supply (Frisch elasticity)." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Palladino, Marco G., Antoine Bertheau, Alexander Hijzen, Astrid Kunze, César Barreto, Dogan Gülümser, Marta Lachowska, Anne Sophie Lassen, Salvatore Lattanzio, Benjamin Lochner, Stefano Lombardi, Jordy Meekes, Balázs Muraközy & Oskar Nordström Skans (2025): Firms and the Gender Wage Gap: A Comparison of Eleven Countries. (VATT working papers / Valtion Taloudellinen Tutkimuskeskus (Helsinki) 181), Helsinki, 82 S.

Abstract

"We quantify the role of gender-specific firm wage premiums in explaining the private-sector gender gap in hourly wages using a harmonized research design across 11 matched employer-employee datasets of ten European countries and Washington State, USA. These premiums contribute to the gender wage gap through two channels: women's concentration in lower-paying firms (sorting) and women receiving lower premiums than men within the same firm (pay-setting). We find that firm wage premiums account for 10 to 30 percent of the gender wage gap. While both mechanisms matter, sorting is the predominant driver of the firm contribution to the gender wage gap in most countries. We document three patterns that are broadly consistent across countries: (1) women's sorting into lower-paying firms increases with age; (2)women are more concentrated in low-paying firms with a high share of part-time workers; and (3) women receive about 90 percent of the rents that men receive from firm surplus gains." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Poli, Silvia De (2025): Can Dad Take Over? Effects of Paternity Leave on Relationship Stability and Employment. (FBK-IRVAPP working paper / Fondazione Bruno Kessler, Research Institute for the Evaluation of Public Policies 2025-03), Trient, 31 S.

Abstract

"This paper assesses how extending paternity leave duration in Spain affects labour market outcomes and relationship stability. By combining administrative data from different sources, this study provides both descriptive and causal evidence of the effectiveness of the reform. First, we show that having a child substantially increases the gender employment gap between fathers and mothers by about 20 percentage points. Yet, between 2016 and 2021, when the duration of paternity leave gradually increased from two to sixteen weeks, this gap decreased by five percentage points. Second, using a regression discontinuity design, we analyse the causal effect of the 2018 reform, which introduced an additional week of leave for fathers that, for the first time, could be taken independently of the mother's leave. Although we do not find robust evidence of an effect on the labour market, we show that the reform increased the stability of the relationship among couples where the mother was employed before childbirth. From a policy perspective, our findings suggest that extending paternity leave could have important implications in balancing family responsibilities and mitigating relationship conflicts." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Roos, Louisa (2025): The true gender pay gap: Accounting for the distribution of unpaid labour. In: Economics Letters, Jg. 247. DOI:10.1016/j.econlet.2024.112144

Abstract

"This paper proposes a novel method to measure gender pay gaps, incorporating paid and unpaid labour. Decomposition analysis using Swiss labour force data attributes a sizable and persistent share of this pay gap to segregation across paid and unpaid work." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.) ((en))

Zitatform

Valentova, Marie, Roland Maas & Alison Koslowski (2025): Parental Leave Challenges From the Perspective of Employers: Understanding Sectors With Low Take‐Up by Fathers. In: Gender, work & organization, Jg. 32, H. 5, S. 1966-1981. DOI:10.1111/gwao.13259

Abstract

"Parental leave policies are designed to facilitate the reconciliation of family and work life. Usage of leave is related to various factors, including the parent's gender, as well as their workplace and employer's characteristics. A wealth of research has explored employees' perceptions of the role of workplaces on leave-taking, yet considerably less is known about the perspective of employers. This paper examines the challenges employers face while implementing parental leave reforms aimed at increasing take up by men. We conducted semi-structured interviews with staff responsible for implementing leave in Luxembourg-based companies where low take-up by fathers is most prevalent. We explore the perceptions of difficulties related to leave usage that companies encounter. The results show that that full-time leave remains the most common choice, while part-time or split leave is less utilized. The employers in the study report difficulties in reorganizing work, finding replacements, and reintegrating employees. The organization of replacement cover appears more challenging when employees take full-time rather than part-time leave and when employees with a highly-specialized job (irrespective of their level of education) take parental leave. These employers tend to cope with replacement issues by negotiating with employees to take more informal forms of leave or by simply not hiring employees in a certain life stage." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

Zitatform

Valentova, Marie (2025): How do parents care together? Dyadic parental leave take-up strategies, wages and workplace characteristics. In: Work, Employment and Society, Jg. 39, H. 1, S. 91-114. DOI:10.1177/09500170241229281

Abstract

"The article explores the association between within-household couples’ parental leave take-up strategies and parents’ earning capacity (hourly wages) and their workplace characteristics. The results, based on the social security register data from Luxembourg, reveal that a couple strategy where both partners take parental leave is more likely when the partners have equal earning capacity, when the mother works in the sector of education, health and social services rather than in other sectors, and when the father is employed in a larger-sized company. Couples where the mother earns more than the father are more likely to opt for a strategy where neither parent takes any leave. The economic sector moderates the effect of fathers’ wages on the probability of choosing the strategy where both partners take leave." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Wu, Mengyao, Silvia Loi, D. Susie Lee & Alberto del Rey Poveda (2025): Bridging the gap? The moderating role of non-parental childcare use in the gap in maternal employment between immigrants and non-immigrants. (MPIDR working paper / Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research 2025-008), Rostock, 24 S. DOI:10.4054/MPIDR-WP-2025-008

Abstract

"While the growing inequalities between non-immigrant and immigrant mothers’ labour market outcomes have been extensively studied, the extent to which these disparities vary across nonparental childcare arrangements remains relatively underexplored. This study examines different types of childcare support – informal care only, formal care only, and mixed care arrangements – as potential moderators of the gap in maternal employment by migration background, while taking into account the immigrant mothers’ length of stay in the receiving country. Using data from the 2018 Fertility Survey in Spain, our results paint a complex picture of the distinctive roles played by different types of childcare arrangements in shaping the employment gap between immigrant and non-immigrant mothers: while long-term immigrant mothers who rely on informal or mixed childcare arrangements have higher employment rates than their non-immigrant counterparts, recent immigrant mothers benefit more from formal childcare services, which are associated with greater participation in paid work. Given that maternal employment is essential for the economic integration of immigrant families, our findings have important implications for developing more inclusive family policies aimed at improving the social inclusion of immigrant women with diverse childcare needs." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Yu, Hyejin, Alexis Nicole Smith & Nikolaos Dimotakis (2025): Dollars and Domestic Duties: A 22‐Year Study of Income, Home Labor, and Gendered Career Outcomes in Dual‐Earner Couples. In: Journal of organizational behavior, Jg. 46, H. 5, S. 662-684. DOI:10.1002/job.2879

Abstract

"Although women's outsized share of household labor and subsequent career disadvantages are well-documented, the impact of income arrangements within dual-earner couples has been underexplored in the context of the work–family dynamic. Drawing upon resource and gender construction theories, we examine how income dynamics within male–female dyads can differentially affect each partner's career success via unpaid home labor. Using multilevel polynomial regression on a longitudinal sample of 7252 dual-earner couples over a 22-year period from the Household, Income, and Labor Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey, we demonstrate that the interplay of income within these dyads differentially shapes partners' household labor, ultimately influencing female (but not male) career promotion. Specifically, women face a lower likelihood of promotion when in male- and female-breadwinning arrangements compared with dual-breadwinning arrangements with minimal resource differentials, partly due to the increased household labor. Among dual-breadwinning arrangements, we find that female partners have a higher chance of promotion when male partners have similarly high (versus low) income levels, due to reduced household labor. Our supplementary analysis uncovers that work centrality accounts for the gendered impact of household labor on promotion while also illustrating how the effect of income arrangements evolves over 22 years. Overall, our findings provide new revelations on how breadwinning arrangements within couples can reinforce or hinder women's career advancement, while largely leaving men's careers unaffected, through the gendered spillover effect of unpaid household labor." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Aavik, Kadri, Pille Ubakivi-Hadachi, Maaris Raudsepp & Triin Roosalu (2024): The gender pay gap—What's the problem represented to be? Analyzing the discourses of Estonian employers, employees, and state officials on pay equality. In: Gender, work & organization, Jg. 31, H. 1, S. 171-191. DOI:10.1111/gwao.13061

Abstract

"The gender pay gap (GPG) remains significant in most countries and is a key indicator of gender inequality in society. Qualitative research on the GPG is scarce, yet, qualitative perspectives on the GPG are valuable as the ways in which the GPG is understood and talked about shape actions to tackle it. This article focuses on how the GPG is represented in the context of work and organizations, inspired by the “What's the Problem Represented to be?” approach, developed by Carol Bacchi. The analysis draws on qualitative data—63 interviews with employers, employees, and state officials—collected in Estonia which exhibits one of the largest GPGs in the European Union. Five dominant representations of the GPG were identified: the GPG as (a) consciously produced by employers, (b) different pay for the same work, (c) unmeasurable due to “unique” and “incomparable” jobs and workers, (d) produced by women's failure to ask for fair pay, and (e) impossible for employers to reduce because of market forces. Collectively, these representations render the GPG inevitable, downplaying its emergence as a result of specific gendered social practices. This has implications for the employers' and the state's willingness and strategies to reduce the GPG." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

Zitatform

Afonso, António & M. Carmen Blanco-Arana (2024): The Persistence of Gender Pay and Employment Gaps in European Countries. (CESifo working paper 11315), München, 18 S.

Abstract

"The gender pay gap and the gender gap in employment remains persistent in Europe despite the basic assertion of gender equality under EU law. We assess the factors that influence the gender pay gap and gender employment gap across European countries. Therefore, we use an unbalanced panel of 31 European countries over the period 2000-2022, and estimate a system generalized method of moment model (GMM). The main conclusions confirm that tertiary education significantly reduces gender pay gap and part-time and temporary contracts significantly increase this gap. Moreover, part-time reduces significantly gender employment gap. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita does not affect these gaps and the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) saw a narrowing of the gender pay and employment gaps in European countries. The results are robust when using a fixed effects (FE) model." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Alfani, Federica, Fabio Clementi, Michele Fabiani, Vasco Molini & Enzo Valentini (2024): Does gender equality in labor participation bring equality? Evidence from developing and developed countries. In: Empirical economics, Jg. 67, H. 1, S. 289-311. DOI:10.1007/s00181-023-02545-0

Abstract

"The female labor force participation (FLFP) has a strong and significant dis-equalizing impact in at least three groups of developing countries, and relatively low initial participation levels, based on a macro- and micro-data comparison, whereas, in developed countries, both a cross-country comparison and a literature review have shown that the relationship is tendentially equalizing. Based on a decile-level data analysis in developing countries, we found that the FLFP showed higher levels of returns among top deciles compared to the lower ones. This evidence emphasizes the importance of developing policies to encourage participation among women belonging to lower deciles of the income distribution." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

Berkery, Elaine, Caroline Murphy & Christine Cross (2024): Gender Balance on State Boards in Ireland: To the Forefront of Progress or Concealing the Status Quo? In: Social Politics, Jg. 31, H. 1, S. 22-48. DOI:10.1093/sp/jxac045

Abstract

"In this article, we examine female appointments to government-owned corporations, called State Sponsored Boards (SSBs), in Ireland over a twenty-eight-year period, to analyze the extent to which gender parity has been achieved using voluntary gender targets. Using data from thirty-four SSBs, we found that overall figures relating to the achievement of gender parity on SSBs are masking the reality of female representation on these boards. We have demonstrated that the high concentration of females on particular boards is increasing the overall average gender representation figures, and as a result, a high proportion of boards are not meeting their gender targets. This research provides evidence of the importance of taking a more nuanced approach to examining gender diversity on boards as a whole." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Bičáková, Alena & Klára Kalíšková (2024): Is longer maternal care always beneficial? The impact of a 4-year paid parental leave. In: Journal of Population Economics, Jg. 37. DOI:10.1007/s00148-024-01010-1

Abstract

"We study the impact of an extension of paid family leave in the Czech Republic from 3 to 4 years on children’s long-term outcomes. We find that an additional year of maternal care at age 3 has an adverse effect on children’s human capital investments and labor market attachment. Affected children are 6 percentage points less likely to be enrolled in college and 4 percentage points more likely to be not in education, employment, or training (NEET) at age 21–22. While the negative impact on education is persistent, with an 8 percentage points lower probability of completing college by the age of 27, the effect on NEET is short-lived. The results are driven by children of low-educated mothers, whose education and NEET outcomes are affected by as much as 12 percentage points. Our findings are consistent with previously documented positive effects of universal childcare on child long-term outcomes and with the fact that the extended maternal care induced by the extension of family leave led to a postponement of public kindergarten enrollment." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

Bugallo, María, Domingo Morales, María Dolores Esteban & Maria Chiara Pagliarella (2024): Model-Based Estimation of Small Area Dissimilarity Indexes: An Application to Sex Occupational Segregation in Spain. In: Social indicators research, Jg. 174, H. 2, S. 473-501. DOI:10.1007/s11205-024-03393-w

Abstract

"This paper introduces a new statistical methodology for estimating Duncan dissimilarity indexes of occupational segregation by sex in administrative areas and time periods. Given that direct estimators of the proportion of men (or women) in the group of employed people for each occupational sector are not accurate enough in the considered estimation domains, we fit to them a three-fold Fay–Herriot model with random effects at three hierarchical levels. Based on the fitted area-level model, empirical best predictors of the cited proportions and Duncan segregation indexes are derived. A parametric bootstrap algorithm is implemented to estimate the mean squared error. Some simulation studies are included to show how the proposed predictors have a good balance between bias and mean squared error. Data from the Spanish Labour Force Survey are used to illustrate the performance of the new statistical methodology and to give some light about the current state of sex occupational segregation by province in Spain. Research claims that there is a sex gap that persists despite advances in the inclusion of women in the labour market in recent years and that is related to the unequal sharing of family responsabilities and the stigmas still present in modern societies." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

Chiang, Yi-Lin & Ran Liu (2024): Egalitarian penalty or reward? A longitudinal study of adolescent gender attitudes and adulthood income. In: Social science research, Jg. 119. DOI:10.1016/j.ssresearch.2024.103000

Abstract

"Studies often attribute the persistent gender pay gap to different labor force experiences between men and women. Yet, attitudes formed in earlier life stages also critically shape individual outcomes. Using longitudinal data from Taiwan, this study examines whether and how adolescents’ gender attitudes are related to income in young adulthood. We test two pathways that mediate this relationship at different time points: the attitude continuity pathway from adolescence to young adulthood, hypothesized by the path-dependence theory, and the occupational pathway during young adulthood, hypothesized by the gender socialization perspective. The findings show that girls with egalitarian attitudes are rewarded, as both pathways facilitate higher income in adulthood. However, boys with egalitarian attitudes are simultaneously rewarded and penalized based on different occupational characteristics, resulting in an overall null effect. This study highlights the importance of adolescent gender attitudes and the differential consequences for men and women in the labor market." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2024 Elsevier) ((en))

Zitatform

Choi, Koangsung, Francesco Renna & Chung Choe (2024): The impact of field of study on the gender wage gap: evidence from the first job offer out of college. In: Applied Economics, Jg. 56, H. 53, S. 6713-6729. DOI:10.1080/00036846.2023.2276078

Abstract

"Using a sample of recently graduated college students from South Korea, we estimate the effects of the between-majors and within-major gender wage gap. We use a recentered influence function to decompose the wage differential between majors and find that women face a higher rate of return to the field of study. In addition, women tend to select their program of study with the intention of optimizing their earnings potential relative to men. In calculating the within-major gender wage gap, we control for selectivity into a field of study extending the current methodology to a multinomial logit setting. We test our model using a sample of new graduates from South Korea. We consider six college majors. The within-major wage differential ranged from 8.2% for natural science graduates to 17% for social science graduates. After selection is accounted for, the gender wage gap becomes smaller in humanities graduates but increases in natural science and medicine graduates. Decomposing the selection correction term into explained and unexplained factors eliminates discrimination in medicine and points to reverse discrimination in natural science." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Chung, Heejung (2024): National family policies and the association between flexible working arrangements and work-to-family conflict across Europe. In: Journal of Family Research, Jg. 36, S. 229-249. DOI:10.20377/jfr-1002

Abstract

"Objective: This paper explores how national family policies moderate the association between flexible working arrangements and work-to-family conflict across countries. Background: Although flexible working is provided to enhance work-family integration, studies show that it can in fact increase work-to-family conflict. However, certain policy contexts can help moderate this association by introducing contexts that enable workers to use of flexible working arrangements to better meet their family and other life demands. Method: The paper uses the European Working Conditions Survey of 2015 including data from workers with caring responsibilities from across 30 European countries. It uses a multilevel cross-level interaction model to examine how family policies, such as childcare and parental leave policies, can explain the cross-national variation in the association between flexible working arrangements, that is flexitime, working-time autonomy, and teleworking, and work-to-family conflict. Results: At the European average, flexible working was associated with higher levels of work-to-family conflict for workers, with working-time-autonomy being worse for men’s, and teleworking being worse for women ’s conflict levels. In countries with generous childcare policies, flexitime was associated with lower levels of work-to-family conflict, especially for women. However, in countries with long mother’s leave, working-time-autonomy was associated with even higher levels of work-to-family conflict for men. Conclusion: The results of this paper evidence how flexible working arrangements need to be introduced in a more holistic manner with possible reforms of wider range of family policies in order for flexible working to meet worker’s work-family integration demands." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Ciasullo, Ludovica & Martina Uccioli (2024): What Works for Working Couples? Work Arrangements, Maternal Labor Supply, and the Division of Home Production. (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 16991), Bonn, 87 S.

Abstract

"We document how a change to work arrangements reduces the child penalty in labor supply for women, and that the consequent more equal distribution of household income does not translate into a more equal division of home production between mothers and fathers. The Australian 2009 Fair Work Act explicitly entitled parents of young children to request a (reasonable) change in work arrangements. Leveraging variation in the timing of the law, timing of childbirth, and the bite of the law across different occupations and industries, we establish three main results. First, the Fair Work Act was used by new mothers to reduce their weekly working hours without renouncing their permanent contract, hence maintaining a regular schedule. Second, with this work arrangement, working mothers’ child penalty declined from a 47 percent drop in hours worked to a 38 percent drop. Third, while this implies a significant shift towards equality in the female- and male-shares of household income, we do not observe any changes in the female (disproportionate) share of home production." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Domit, Sílvia & Damla Kesimal (2024): Labor Market Gender Gaps in Türkiye: A Bird’s Eye View. (IMF working papers / International Monetary Fund 2024,171), Washington, DC, 20 S.

Abstract

"Despite recent improvements, Türkiye’s low female labor force participation and high share of informal female workers stand out internationally. Closing these gender gaps would boost medium-term growth and make it more inclusive. This paper puts these gaps in an international context, explores their interlinkages with fiscal policies, and identifies policy priorities." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Doorley, Karina & Claire Keane (2024): Tax-benefit systems and the gender gap in income. In: Journal of Economic Inequality, Jg. 22, H. 2, S. 285-309. DOI:10.1007/s10888-023-09594-6

Abstract

"The gender wage gap and the gender work gap are sizable, persistent and well documented for many countries. The result of the gender wage and gender work gap combined is an income gap between men and women. A small literature has begun to examine how the tax-benefit system contributes to closing gender income gaps by redistributing between men and women. In this paper, we study the effect of tax-benefit policy on gender differences in income in the EU27 countries and the UK. We use microsimulation models linked to survey data to estimate gender gaps in market income (before taxes and transfers) and disposable income (after taxes and transfers) for each country. We then decompose the difference between the gender gap in market income and the gender gap in disposable income into the relative contribution of taxes and benefits in each country. We also isolate the relative contributions of the gender wage gap and the gender work gap to the overall gap in income between men and women in two of these countries." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

Ewald, Alina, Emilee Gilbert & Kate Huppatz (2024): Knowing your place: the role of occupational status in fathers' flexible working. In: Community, work & family, Jg. 27, H. 4, S. 454-471. DOI:10.1080/13668803.2023.2207717

Abstract

"This study explored how fathers’ occupational status shapes their constructions, experiences, and negotiations of Flexible Working. In particular, we examined whether occupational status impacted men’s access to, and the acceptability of using FWAs for the purposes of care. Data from semi-structured interviews with 43 working fathers from diverse occupational roles within the Australian financial sector were analysed using Foucauldian discourse analysis. Findings suggest that fathers’ access to flexibility is contingent upon and shaped by their position in the organisational hierarchy. Fathers in ‘higher-status’ roles reported significant power and agency in their access to and adoption of FWAs. However, a major barrier to their use of flexibility was the discursively constructed expectation that men in these positions should be dedicated to their paid work role and career progression rather than caring for their child(ren). In contrast, men in ‘lower-status’ roles lacked autonomy, agency, and power in relation to accessing flexibility for caring purposes. These fathers reported being closely monitored in their paid working roles, having little flexibility available to them in these roles, and felt trepidatious about even requesting FWAs for caring for their child(ren)." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Frémeaux, Nicolas, SeEun Jung & Arnaud Lefranc (2024): Assortative mating and earnings inequality in South Korea. In: Journal of Economic Inequality, Jg. 22, H. 1, S. 211-236. DOI:10.1007/s10888-023-09588-4

Abstract

"We analyze economic assortative mating and its contribution to earnings inequality in South Korea from 1998 to 2018. Our analysis is based on cross-sectional and panel data and accounts for several methodological issues, including measurement error and sample selection bias. Despite a very high level of assortativeness in education, Korea exhibits a negative correlation in earnings between spouses due to low female labor force participation and its negative correlation with male earnings. However, the correlation is large and positive for hourly earnings, among dual-earner couples. Cohort analysis reveals significant changes in earnings correlations, as rising female labor force participation offsets slightly declining educational sorting among younger cohorts. As a result, assortative mating contributes to a very limited extent to inequality between households in observed monthly earnings, but accounts for a sizable fraction, around to 15%, of inequality between household in hourly earnings." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

Gallen, Yana (2024): Motherhood and the Gender Productivity Gap. In: Journal of the European Economic Association, Jg. 22, H. 3, S. 1055-1096. DOI:10.1093/jeea/jvad064

Abstract

"Using Danish matched employer–employee data, I compare the relative pay of men and women to their relative productivity as measured by production function estimation. I find that the gender “productivity gap” is 8%, implying that almost two thirds of the residual gender wage gap is due to productivity differences between men and women. Motherhood plays an important role, yet it also reveals a puzzle: The pay gap for mothers is entirely explained by productivity, whereas the gap for non-mothers is not. In addition, the decoupling of pay and productivity for women without children happens during their prime-child bearing years. These estimates are robust to a variety of specifications for the impact of observables on productivity, and robust to accounting for endogenous sorting of women into less productive firms using a control-function approach. This paper also provides estimates of the productivity gap across industries and occupations, finding the same general patterns for mothers compared to women without children within these subgroups." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Garraio, Carolina, Marc Grau-Grau, Paula Mena Matos & Marisa Matias (2024): First-time Fathers Navigating Caregiving and Paid Work: A Dyadic and Longitudinal Qualitative Study. (SocArXiv papers), 38 S. DOI:10.31234/osf.io/gr79x

Abstract

"This study aimed to explore how first-time (heterosexual) fathers’ Involvement in caregiving and paid work roles was (co)constructed with their partners during the transition to parenthood. The transition to parenthood entails adaptations and emotional experiences that make this period unique for fathers. Importantly, the emergence of the father role occurs within a relational context. However, few studies use a dyadic lens, and even fewer take a longitudinal approach to capture the unfolding dynamics during the transition to parenthood. An even smaller number combine these perspectives with a qualitative approach to understand how fathers construct and negotiate their new role within the coparenting relationship. We conducted semi-structured individual interviews with each member of a couple in two waves: during the third trimester of pregnancy and 18 months after birth. We analyzed data from 10 couples (40 interviews in total) using a combination of dyadic and longitudinal approaches. We identified three categories of couples, describing broad patterns and typical behaviors, values, and beliefs about work and parenting roles: “working fathers, caring mothers,” “in-between care and work” and “equal care, equal work”. Fathers’ involvement in caregiving and paid work roles begins to take shape early in pregnancy through co-constructive processes, influenced by an interplay of individual and shared expectations and available resources. Our findings highlight the importance of psychological interventions during the transition to parenthood to foster a supportive and adaptive family environment, and promote fathers’ involvement." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Giannantoni, Costanza & Andrés Rodríguez-Pose (2024): Regional government institutions and the capacity for women to reconcile career and motherhood. (Papers in evolutionary economic geography 2024,35), Utrecht, 44 S.

Abstract

"Declining fertility and the persistent underrepresentation of women in the labor market are key concerns of our time. The fact that they overlap is not fortuitous. Traditionally, women everywhere have faced a conflict in balancing their career ambitions with family responsibilities. Yet, the pressures arising from this conflict vary enormously from one place to another. Existing research has tended to overlook the geographical features of this dilemma, which could result in an inadequate understanding of the issue and lead to ineffective policy responses. This paper examines how variations in the quality of regional institutions affect women's capacity to reconcile career and motherhood and, consequently, gender equality within Europe. Using panel data from 216 regions across 18 European countries, we uncover a positive effect of regional institutional quality on fertility rates, taking into account variations in female employment. Moreover, we show that European regions with better government quality provide a more reliable environment for managing the career/motherhood dilemma often faced by women. In contrast, women living in regions with weaker government institutions are more constrained in both their career and childbearing options." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Godechot, Olivier, Donald Tomaskovic-Devey, István Boza, Lasse Henriksen, Are Skeie Hermansen, Feng Hou, Naomi Kodama, Alena Křížková, Jiwook Jung, Zoltán Lippényi, Silvia Maja Melzer, Eunmi Mun, Halil Sabanci, Max Thaning, Dustin Avent-Holt, Nina Bandelj, Paula Apascaritei, Alexis Baudour, David Cort, Marta M. Elvira, Gergely Hajdu, Aleksandra Kanjuo-Mrčela, Joseph King, Andrew Penner, Trond Petersen, William Rainey, Mirna Safi, Matthew Soener & Andreja Poje (2024): The Great Separation: Top Earner Segregation at Work in Advanced Capitalist Economies. In: American journal of sociology, Jg. 130, H. 2, S. 439-495. DOI:10.1086/731603

Abstract

"Earnings segregation at work is an understudied topic in social science, despite the workplace being an everyday nexus for social mixing, cohesion, contact, claims-making, and resource exchange. It is all the more urgent to study as workplaces, in the last decades, have undergone profound reorganizations that could impact the magnitude and evolution of earnings segregation. Analyzing linked employer-employee panel administrative databases, we estimate the evolving isolation of higher earners from other employees in 12 countries: Canada, Czechia, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, South Korea, and Sweden. We find in almost all countries a growing workplace isolation of top earners and dramatically declining exposure of top earners to bottom earners. We do a first exploration of the main factors accounting for this trend: deindustrialization, workplace downsizing restructuring (including layoffs, outsourcing, offshoring, and subcontracting) and digitalization contribute substantially to the increase in top earner segregation. These findings open up a future research agenda on the causes and consequences of top earner segregation." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Gottlieb, Charles, Cheryl Doss, Douglas Gollin & Markus Poschke (2024): The Gender Division of Work across Countries. (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 16896), Bonn, 64 S.

Abstract

"Across countries, women and men allocate time differently between market work, domestic services, and care work. In this paper, we document the gender division of work, drawing on a new harmonized data set that provides us with high-quality time use data for 50 countries spanning the global income distribution. A striking feature of the data is the wide dispersion across countries at similar income levels. We use these data to motivate a macroeconomic model of household time use in which country-level allocations are shaped by wages and a set of "wedges" that resemble productivity, preferences, and disutilities. Taking the model to country-level observations, we find that a wedge related to the disutility of market work for women plays a crucial role in generating the observed dispersion of outcomes, particularly for middle-income countries. Variation in the division of non-market work is principally shaped by a wedge indicating greater disutility for men, which is especially large in some low- and middle-income countries." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Guner, Nezih, Ezgi Kaya & Virginia Sánchez-Marcos (2024): Labor Market Institutions and Fertility. (HCEO working paper / Human capital and economic opportunity global working group 2024,006), Chicago, Ill., 74 S.

Abstract

"Among high-income countries, fertility rates differ significantly, with some experiencing total fertility rates as low as 1 to 1.3 children per woman. However, the reasons behind low fertility rates are not well understood. We show that uncertainty created by dual labor markets, the coexistence of temporary and open-ended contracts, and the inflexibility of work schedules are crucial to understanding low fertility. Using rich administrative data from the Spanish Social Security records, we document that temporary contracts are associated with a lower probability of first birth. With Time Use data, we also show that women with children are less likely to work in jobs with split-shift schedules. Such jobs have a long break in the middle of the day, and present a concrete example of inflexible work arrangements and fixed time cost of work. We then build a life-cycle model in which married women decide whether to work, how many children to have, and when to have them. Reforms that eliminate duality or split-shift schedules increase women's labor force participation and reduce the employment gap between mothers and non-mothers. They also increase fertility for women who are employed. Reforming these labor market institutions and providing childcare subsidies would increase the completed fertility of married women to 1.8 children." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Guner, Nezih, Ezgi Kaya & Virginia Sánchez-Marcos (2024): Labor Market Institutions and Fertility. In: International Economic Review, Jg. 65, H. 3, S. 1551-1587. DOI:10.1111/iere.12708

Abstract

"Some high-income countries have total fertility rates as low as one child. Using Spanish administrative data, we document that temporary contracts correlate with lower first birth rates. Also, women with children are less likely to work split-shift jobs with long breaks in the middle of the day. We build a life-cycle model where women decide on labor supply and fertility. We show that reforms eliminating duality or split-shift jobs raise women's labor participation, narrow the employment gap between mothers and nonmothers, and boost fertility for working women. These reforms, together with childcare subsidies, increase married women's fertility to 1.8 children." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

Zitatform

Harris, Candice & Jarrod Haar (2024): Work and family interaction management: the case for zigzag working. In: The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Jg. 35, H. 18, S. 3001-3023. DOI:10.1080/09585192.2024.2390986

Abstract

"The present study seeks to advance understanding of the interaction of work and family roles. Typically, while the intersection of these domains is established as either being detrimental (i.e. work-family conflict) or beneficial (i.e. work-family enrichment), we argue there is a fundamental issue with timing. Specifically, we offer zigzag working as an approach to understanding how work and family interact. We suggest, rather than roles operating separately (e.g. work to family or family to work), the reality of work is where employees have work and family roles intersecting simultaneously. We believe this provides unique insights for those with dependent responsibilities, representing potentially both a unique challenge and benefit. Our study has two samples (n?=?318 employees and n?=?373 managers) and we find support for zigzag working at the day-level and while it is positively related to work-family conflict dimensions it is also positively related to happiness. Overall, our paper offers a new lens on work-family border negotiation, providing empirical evidence showing that zigzag working does occur and that it appears to have unique properties. Importantly, zigging and zagging around work and dependents during a typical day represents both positive and negative effects, highlighting a unique occurrence within the literature." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Haupt, Andreas & Dafna Gelbgiser (2024): The gendered division of cognitive household labor, mental load, and family–work conflict in European countries. In: European Societies, Jg. 26, H. 3, S. 828-854. DOI:10.1080/14616696.2023.2271963

Abstract

"The unequal division of cognitive labor within households, and its potential association with mental load and stress, has gained substantial interest in recent public and scholarly discussions. We aim to deepen this debate theoretically and empirically. First, going beyond the question of whether the division of cognitive labor is gendered, we connect cognitive household labor with existing stress theories and ask whether men and women typically perform cognitive labor tasks that involve different levels of stress. We then discuss whether women perform these stressful tasks more often, making them more prone to higher levels of Family–work conflict. Second, we test the association between the division of cognitive labor and Family–work conflict empirically using large-scale survey data from 10 European countries within the Generations & Gender Programme (GGP). Results based on logistic regressions confirm that a high share of cognitive labor increases women's Family–work conflict, but not men's. We discuss future directions in the conceptualization and measurement of cognitive labor in the household and its implications for mental load. Through its contributions, this paper lays the foundations for a comprehensive understanding of the implications of an unequal division of cognitive labor in the household for gender inequality." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Hiriscau, Andra (2024): The Effect of Paid Maternity Leave on Fertility and Mothers’ Labor Force Participation. In: Journal of labor research, Jg. 45, H. 3, S. 350-384. DOI:10.1007/s12122-024-09361-0

Abstract

"This study examines how paid maternity leave (ML) impacted fertility and mothers’ labor force participation in Romania. The ML gives mothers the right to paid leave until the child turns one year old, and it offers 65% of monthly income before birth. I examine the effects of this policy change using a regression discontinuity design and census data. I show that mothers who are eligible for ML are 2.5 percentage-points more likely to have an additional child than those ineligible. The effect is persistent for seven years after the policy was implemented. I find no significant results regarding the mother’s labor force participation. These results have important implications regarding the shrinking working-age population and the ability to fund benefits programs." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

Inoue, Chihiro, Yusuke Ishihata & Shintaro Yamaguchi (2024): Working from home leads to more family-oriented men. In: Review of Economics of the Household, Jg. 22, H. 2, S. 783-829. DOI:10.1007/s11150-023-09682-6

Abstract

"We examine how working from home (WFH) affects men’s participation in childcare and housework and their attitudes toward family. Because WFH is an endogenous decision, we apply a first-difference instrumental variable estimator, taking the degree to which one can work from home, measured at the individual level, as the instrument. We find that WFH increases the time that men spend on household chores and with family, and the fraction of men who consider life more important than work. Although WFH decreases their commuting time, we find no evidence that it reduces working hours or self-perceived productivity." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

Kritikos, Alexander S., Mika Maliranta, Veera Nippala & Satu Nurmi (2024): Does gender of firm ownership matter? Female entrepreneurs and the gender pay gap. (GLO discussion paper / Global Labor Organization 1422), Essen, 39 S.

Abstract

"We examine how the gender of business-owners is related to the wages paid to female relative to male employees working in their firms. Using Finnish register data and employing firm fixed effects, we find that the gender pay gap is - starting from a gender pay gap of 11 to 12 percent - two to three percentage-points lower for hourly wages in female-owned firms than in male-owned firms. Results are robust to how the wage is measured, as well as to various further robustness checks. More importantly, we find substantial differences between industries. While, for instance, in the manufacturing sector, the gender of the owner plays no role for the gender pay gap, in several service sector industries, like ICT or business services, no or a negligible gender pay gap can be found, but only when firms are led by female business owners. Businesses in male ownership maintain a gender pay gap of around 10 percent also in the latter industries. With increasing firm size, the influence of the gender of the owner, however, fades. In large firms, it seems that others - firm managers - determine wages and no differences in the pay gap are observed between male- and female-owned firms." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Kulik, Liat (2024): Does the marital pay gap matter? Women’s family-work experiences by earning pattern and ethnic community. In: Community, work & family, S. 1-20. DOI:10.1080/13668803.2024.2398584

Abstract

"This study explored variations in women’s experiences within the family-work system by different earning patterns: where men outearn women, both spouses earn equally, or women outearn men. This examination was conducted in three major ethnic communities in Israel: Jews in the general population, ultraOrthodox Jews, and Arabs. The analysis focused on three dimensions of the family-work system: behavioral (perceived family and work time), cognitive (assessment of family-work conflict), and affective (marital satisfaction). In all three communities, women who outearned their spouses tended to dedicate more hours to paid work and less to family and household responsibilities. However, based on women’s perceptions, men allocated the same number of hours to family responsibilities, irrespective of their ethnicity or earning patterns. In the Arab community, women earning the same or more than their spouses experienced heightened work-family conflict compared to those with different earning patterns in their community. Finally, ultra-Orthodox women reported the highest levels of marital satisfaction, regardless of earning pattern. Based on these findings, organizations should be encouraged to implement family-friendly policies to support women, especially in traditional communities." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Lee, Ji Min & Byung In Lim (2024): The effects of Korea's free childcare policy on women's time use allocation. In: Applied Economics Letters, Jg. 31, H. 17, S. 1716-1720. DOI:10.1080/13504851.2023.2290581

Abstract

"This study applies the DID method to the 3rd and 5th Time Use Survey in Korea to demonstrate the impact of South Korea's free childcare policy on time allocation of women with preschool children. Estimation results indicate that the free childcare policy increased working hours of married women with preschool children and free time for full-time housewives. These results imply that the free childcare policy promotes women's work-family balance and prevents women's career interruptions. It also highlights the reality of daycare facilities-oriented operation which is a characteristic of Korea's free childcare policy." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Magda, Iga, Jacek Bieliński, Marzena Feldy & Anna Knapińska (2024): The Gender Pay Gap at the Early Stages of Academic Careers. (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 17063), Bonn, 31 S.

Abstract

"The number of countries that have devoted time and attention to establishing gender equality regulations in academia is increasing. However, various studies indicate that women remain underrepresented among tenured faculty and in senior positions, and that female academic staff earn less than male ones. The reasons for these gaps, in particular those specific to academia, remain unclear. This article analyzes Polish female and male PhD graduates to measure the pay gap between them and its progression over time. The article studies the sources of the pay gap, with a special focus on parenthood. It draws on a dataset that covers the entire population of PhD holders who were awarded their degrees and were hired at any Polish university between 2014 and 2018. The study's results reveal that despite equal pay regulations, a relatively narrow (3–5%) but stable adjusted gender pay gap already exists among early-career academics who do not have children, and that the gap widens considerably when income from outside academia (6–11%) is considered. Basic incomes of mothers in academia are 18–20% lower than those of nonmothers. A substantial fatherhood wage premium (33–37%) arises when all sources of income are considered. Academia is not necessarily an equal workplace." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Mercier, Eric, Amanda Le Couteur & Paul Delfabbro (2024): 'I am different': a qualitative analysis of part-time working fathers' constructions of their experiences. In: Community, work & family, Jg. 27, H. 1, S. 1-17. DOI:10.1080/13668803.2022.2045904

Abstract

"Although there has been an increasing interest in the notion of involved fatherhood, few studies have examined how fathers who work part-time and engage in child-rearing make sense of this experience. The present study explores how part-time working fathers positioned themselves in terms of their ‘at home’ and ‘at work’ identities. Thematic analysis was used to examine 30 interviewees’ accounts of their experiences. Three central themes were identified: (1) choosing to work part-time, (2) benefits of working part-time, and (3) contrasts with fathers as ‘breadwinners’. A common feature in all of these themes was interviewees’ flexible transition between traditional and non-traditional types of masculinity. The ways in which part-time working fathers positioned themselves as caring for children while maintaining attachment to more traditional types of masculinity are considered in terms of implications for theory and for fathers’ personal development. At a time where expectations of fathers engaged in child-rearing are increasing, the results of this study could be drawn on in the area of personal development to support men in forming new strategies around fathering practices." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Mora-Sanguinetti, Juan S., Laura Hospido & Andrés Atienza-Maeso (2024): Is Equality Regulation Effective in Reducing Gender Gaps in the Labor Market? Quantification and Evidence for Spain. (Documents de travail / Banque de France 943), Paris, 23 S.

Abstract

"This article quantifies, through text analysis, when, at what rate and in what regions, Spanish administrations have adopted regulations aimed at achieving gender equality, improving work-life balance or combating harassment. The study covers the period 1996-2022, identifying both central government legislation and legislation in each of the regions. The analysis, therefore, organises the information in a panel format. The indicators reveal the high degree of heterogeneity in terms of the legislation in the various related areas, with non-discrimination legislation being the most developed and frequent. They also reveal differences between regions, with Andalusia and Catalonia being those in which most legislation has been adopted. The database is then used to investigate the relationship between legislative changes and labour market inflows for women in Spain. Our correlation analysis exhibits a positive relationship between the volume of legislation passed in the areas of interest, such as non-discrimination policies, and indicators of both employment and female labour force participation." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Murillo Huertas, Inés P. & José L. Raymond (2024): Age dynamics of the gender wage gap: An analysis with matched employer-employee microdata for Spain. In: The Journal of Industrial Relations, Jg. 66, H. 2, S. 186-214. DOI:10.1177/00221856241229132

Abstract

"The aim of this research is to provide new evidence on the evolution of the gender wage gap by age using matched employer-employee microdata for Spain, taking into account changes across generations with respect to the age dynamics of the pay gap. We propose a wage equation controlling for age effects and their differences by gender. We estimate this equation by year taking advantage of overlapping cross-sectional microdata. We then calculate the variation of the gender wage gap for individuals with the same age but belonging to different generations as each wave of our data encompasses common birth cohorts. Our results suggest that the gender wage gap in the case of Spain tends to decrease both over time and across generations. By contrast, it tends to widen as women get older, which is consistent with previous research for other countries. These trends are robust to changes in the wage equation specification and apply even for comparisons of very similar men and women working at very similar firms. In fact, segregation appears to play an important role in the evolution of the gender wage gap along the career." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Núñez, Hernández Fernando, Carlos Usabiaga & de Toledo Pablo Álvarez (2024): Labour market segmentation and the gender wage gap in Spain. In: International Journal of Manpower, Jg. 45, H. 10, S. 16-41. DOI:10.1108/IJM-10-2023-0601

Abstract

"Purpose: The purpose of this study is to analyze the gender wage gap (GWG) in Spain adopting a labor market segmentation approach. Once we obtain the different labor segments (or idiosyncratic labor markets), we are able to decompose the GWG into its observed and unobserved heterogeneity components. Design/methodology/approach We use the data from the Continuous Sample of Working Lives for the year 2021 (matched employer–employee [EE] data). Contingency tables and clustering techniques are applied to employment data to identify idiosyncratic labour markets where men and/or women of different ages tend to match/associate with different sectors of activity and occupation groups. Once this “heatmap” of labour associations is known, we can analyze its hottest areas (the idiosyncratic labor markets) from the perspective of wage discrimination by gender (Oaxaca-Blinder model). Findings In Spain, in general, men are paid more than women, and this is not always justified by their respective attributes. Among our results, the fact stands out that women tend to move to those idiosyncratic markets (biclusters) where the GWG (in favour of men) is smaller. Research limitations/implications It has not been possible to obtain remuneration data by job-placement, but an annual EE relationship is used. Future research should attempt to analyse the GWG across the wage distribution in the different idiosyncratic markets. Practical implications Our combination of methodologies can be adapted to other economies and variables and provides detailed information on the labour-matching process and gender wage discrimination in segmented labor markets. Social implications Our contribution is very important for labor market policies, trying to reduce unfair inequalities. Originality/value The study of the GWG from a novel labor segmentation perspective can be interesting for other researchers, institutions and policy makers." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Emerald Group) ((en))

Zitatform

O'Brien, Wendy, Clare Hanlon & Vasso Apostolopoulos (2024): Continuum of care to advance women as leaders in male-dominated industries. In: Gender, work & organization, Jg. 31, H. 6, S. 2749-2767. DOI:10.1111/gwao.13122

Abstract

"Women who enter professions that have previously been male-dominated often struggle to rise through ranks to leadership positions. Herein, we present the findings of a 12-month cross-sector intervention focused on embedding practices into organizations to create an inclusive organizational environment that fostered the development of women leaders. The intervention focused on three male-dominated sectors, sport, surgery and trades. Managing the intervention was an Advisory Group that comprised researchers, and leaders from a national member Association and Organization within each sector. The Advisory Group's goal was to provide support and guidance to assist Organizations with the task of changing and challenging their values toward a feminist orientation. Post-intervention interviews were conducted with women leaders and Advisory Group Members, to examine how Organizations can build their capacity to embed practices and policies to encourage women as leaders. Extending on a conceptualization of continuum of care across three focus areas we discuss how capabilities were affirmed through visible and accessible career pathways; the empowering potential of mentoring and networking; and creating cultures of belonging through addressing unconscious bias." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

Zitatform

Oehrli, Dominique, Isabelle Stadelmann-Steffen & Meret Lütolf (2024): How Does the Provision of Childcare Services Affect Mothers' Employment Intentions? Empirical Evidence from a Conjoint Experiment. In: Journal of Social Policy, Jg. 53, S. 450-469. DOI:10.1017/S0047279422000423

Abstract

"Numerous studies have demonstrated that the provision of early childhood education and childcare services (ECEC) is associated with higher women’s participation in the labor market.However, many questions about the causal relationship between the supply of childcare and patterns of female employment remain open. In an effort to overcome common endogeneity problems, we conducted a conjoint experiment in Switzerland, which enables us to analyze mothers’ employmentintentions in different – and even in some hypothetical – contexts. Our results demonstrate that improving the provision of ECEC services does affect mothers’ intentions to engage in paid labor. Nevertheless, mothers comprise a heterogeneous group. As expected, ECEC services’effects are limited for mothers with comparatively high levels of employment. In contrast, mothers with low levels of employment are quite reactive to changing policy contexts, especially if external childcare spots for preschoolers become affordable. Notably, elasticity is present not only in the behavior of women with preferences for supplementary, external childcare, but also in that of women with preferences for parental or home-centered childcare. Our study thus highlights childcare policies ’ potential to change the patterns of female employment in contexts marked by persistent traditional gender roles and limited childcare provision." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Onuk, Parla & Yılmaz Aydin (2024): Gender gap and the labor market structure: A neoclassical approach for the case of Turkiye. In: Quality & quantity, Jg. 58, H. 5, S. 4627-4640. DOI:10.1007/s11135-024-01871-4

Abstract

"In recent years, Turkiye has been among the lowest in the Global Gender Gap index announced. This study is intended to analyze the main determinants of the labor market and the role of women in this market by shedding light on Turkiye's economic and government policies in the last 20 years. For this, the basic human capital model has been applied using the Household Labor Force Survey of 2021 published by TURKSTAT (Turkish Statistical Institute). The wage increases with the increased level of education and experience that supports the basic model. At the same time, the extended models that we have applied have shown that women, despite having a high level of education, take a lower wage than men. At the same time, single and married women are less likely to participate in the labor force. Moreover, the wage taken decreases with the employment in the private sector and working part-time. Considering the differences between the sectors, the workers in the industrial sector have been determined to be paid a higher wage than those in the sectors of service and agriculture. An analysis of women's participation in labour force has also shown that their marital status as married and the increase in their educational level has a negative effect. Finally, we have discussed the disadvantages of being a woman in the labour market where the neoliberal policies implemented in Turkiye have deepened the gap." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

Quinto, Alicia De & Libertad González (2024): The Short- and Long-Term Effects of Family-Friendly Policies on Mothers' Employment. (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 17509), Bonn, 53 S.

Abstract

"Countries often encourage part-time work among new parents as part of their family policies, aiming to foster mothers' labor market attachment. However, this approach may unintentionally impede women's long-term career prospects. We examine the impact of a 1999 Spanish reform that allowed parents to reduce their working hours by up to a half while their youngest child was under age 6, along with job protection measures. Leveraging eligibility rules, we follow a regression kink design, comparing ineligible women to mothers who had varying lengths of eligibility, and tracking their subsequent work trajectories. Our findings show that longer eligibility led to a modest increase in maternal part-time work during her child's early years, with mothers working approximately one additional day part-time for each extra month of eligibility. This increase in part-time work substituted for days spent in unemployment rather than reducing full-time work, leading to a rise in earnings. In the long term, extended eligibility also led to improvements in both employment and earnings. Overall, we find that the policy had a positive impact on the labor supply and earnings of women with children, both in the short and long term." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Quinto, Alicia De & Libertad González (2024): The Short- and Long-Term Effects of Family-Friendly Policies on Women's Employment. (Barcelona GSE working paper series 1434), Barcelona, 48 S.

Abstract

"Countries often encourage part-time work among new parents as part of their family policies, aiming to foster mothers' attachment to the labor force. However, this well-intentioned approach may inadvertently impede women's long-term prospects in the labor market. We examine the impact of a 1999 Spanish reform allowing new parents to reduce working hours by up to a half while their youngest child is under age 6, along with job protection measures. Leveraging eligibility rules, we employ a regression kink design, comparing ineligible women to mothers with varying eligibility durations, and track women's subsequent work trajectories. We find that longer eligibility resulted in a modest increase in maternal part-time work during her child's early years. Mothers worked part time, on average, about one additional day for each extra month of eligibility. This rise in part-time work came at the expense of fewer days of unemployment, rather than fewer days of full-time work, and thus correlated with higher earnings. In the long term, we document slightly higher employment and earnings for those with extended eligibility after aging out of the program. The long-term effects remain modest. In conclusion, we find that the policy had minimal impact on the labor supply and earnings of women with children, both in the short and longer term." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Rúdólfsdóttir, Annadís Greta & Auður Magndís Auðardóttir (2024): “I feel like I am betraying my child”: The socio-politics of maternal guilt and shame. In: Gender, work & organization, Jg. 31, H. 6, S. 2733-2748. DOI:10.1111/gwao.13124

Abstract

"In this paper, we explore maternal shame and guilt as affective derivatives of social regulations of motherhood in Iceland, which is internationally perceived as a frontrunner in gender equality. We analyze 450 qualitative questionnaires completed by parents describing feelings of guilt and shame in connection to parenthood. We use 76 questionnaires completed by fathers to contrast and compare to answers from mothers to better understand the affective-discursive workings of motherhood. The affective-discursive analytical framework allows us to understand affective pulls, pushes, power dynamics and their social politics. The findings are contextualized in the Nordic welfare state, neoliberalism, the current ethos of intensive mothering. The recurrent thread running through the data is the idea of the ever-present mother, and under this umbrella concept, we have developed two affective-discursive themes: (i) the guilt of working (long hours) and having to arrange for childcare and (ii) failing to be 100% present for the child. We conclude that the emotions of guilt and shame are consistently present in mothers' lives, much more so than in fathers' lives, and that this gendered pattern is both caused by and serves to reinforce the age-old cultural mandate that mothers are primarily responsible for child rearing. The marks of intensive mothering are evident in mothers' description of feeling guilty for everyday tasks such as working, cleaning, studying, arranging for daycare, sending their children to preschool, and attending to their own needs. This gendered pattern suggests that the gender equality cornerstone of the Nordic welfare state might be at risk as important institutions, such as preschools, are perceived as inferior to mothers' constant attention." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

Zitatform

Szabó-Morvai, Ágnes & Anna Lovász (2024): Where can childcare expansion increase maternal labor supply? A comparison of quasi-experimental estimates from seven countries. In: Empirical economics, Jg. 66, H. 6, S. 2823-2879. DOI:10.1007/s00181-023-02531-6

Abstract

"The estimated effect of childcare availability on maternal labor supply varies highly in previous single-country estimates. We provide comparable quasi-experimental estimates of the childcare effect for seven countries, using harmonized data and a uniform method based on country-specific childcare eligibility cutoffs. We evaluate the estimates in light of key institutional factors to determine under what conditions childcare expansion is likely to be effective. We propose a measure that captures childcare scarcity and predicts the effectiveness of childcare expansion: the gap between the participation rate of mothers with older children (aged 6–14) and childcare coverage under the age of 3. In countries with a high gap, we find that childcare availability has a significant positive impact on maternal labor supply (Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovak Republic). No significant impact is found in countries where the gap is low due to either already high childcare coverage (France) or the low participation of mothers with older children (Greece, Italy). We discuss other policies that need to be addressed concurrently for childcare expansion to achieve its goal of increasing mothers' participation in the labor market." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

Žiedelis, Arūnas, Jurgita Lazauskaitė-Zabielskė & Ieva Urbanavičiūtė (2024): The gendered effect of an overwork climate and high personal standards for work–home conflict during the pandemic. In: Economic and Industrial Democracy, Jg. 45, H. 2, S. 470-488. DOI:10.1177/0143831X231167497

Abstract

"Although working from home and various other forms of flexible work are often presented as measures to strengthen work–life balance, research depicts a less optimistic picture. Previous research has shown that the impact of telework on work–home conflict is controversial, depending on various factors that are also frequently gender-specific. In this study, the authors evaluate and compare the effects of external expectations (i.e., an organizational overwork climate) and internal expectations (i.e., high personal standards) on changes in work–home conflict between working men and women during theCOVID-19 pandemic in Lithuania. Both types of expectations were associated with difficulties reconciling work and private life. Due to their interactions with stereotypical gender roles, organizational expectations encouraging overtime work had a more pronounced effect on male employees. Results suggest that an overwork climate within organizations is a problem not only for employees’ well-being but also poses a risk to gender equality in work and private life." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Asali, Muhammad (2023): Civil rights experiments versus enrichment experiments in wage gap analysis. In: Applied Economics Letters, Jg. 30, H. 10, S. 1395-1399. DOI:10.1080/13504851.2022.2056124

Abstract

"The choice of the non-discriminatory vector of returns in Oaxaca-Blinder wage gap decompositions affects the results. Rather than being arbitrary, that choice should depend on the nature of the intended policy to address wage differentials in the labour market. The effectiveness of policies at the extensive margin, such as those offering greater access to higher education, is better estimated by the explained part of the wage gap, when choosing the lower-wage group’s vector of returns as non-discriminatory (the ‘enrichment experiment’). Alternatively, the effectiveness of affirmative action policies is better estimated by the unexplained part of the wage gap, when choosing the higher-wage group’s vector of returns as non-discriminatory (the ‘civil rights experiment’). We provide an example of applying this methodology for ethnic and gender wage differentials in the Georgian labour market." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Bar-Haim, Eyal, Louis Chauvel, Janet Gornick & Anne Hartung (2023): The Persistence of the Gender Earnings Gap: Cohort Trends and the Role of Education in Twelve Countries. In: Social indicators research, Jg. 165, H. 3, S. 821-841. DOI:10.1007/s11205-022-03029-x

Abstract

"Studying twelve countries over 30 years, we examine whether women's educational expansion has translated into a narrowing of the gender gap in earnings when including persons with zero earnings. As educational attainment is cohort-dependent, an Age-Period-Cohort analysis is most appropriate in our view. Using the micro data from the Luxembourg Income Study (LIS) Database, we show that while, in terms of attainment of tertiary education, women have caught up and often even outperform men, substantial gender differences in our earnings measure persist in all countries. Using the Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition method in an innovative age-period-cohort approach, we demonstrate that the role of education in explaining gender earnings differences has been limited and even decreased over cohorts. We also conclude that, when including persons not receiving earnings, earnings differences at levels far from gender equality will likely persist in the future, even if the “rise of women” in terms of education continues—as the share of women in higher education increases and the returns to education in particular for women declines." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

Bastianelli, Elena, Cristina Solera & Daniele Vignoli (2023): Men and women's employment status and union (in)stability: does contextual gender equality matter? (DISIA working paper / Universit`a degli Studi di Firenze 2023,09), [Firenze], 28 S.

Abstract

"Gender theories agree that the role played by women and men's employment status in the prediction of union dissolution depends on the level of gender equality in the society. Given its strong regional differences, Italy represents an excellent laboratory to study how variations in gender contexts influence the gendered relationship between employment status and union dissolution. We measured regional gender equality by means of an index comprising equality in three spheres: the labor market, the family, and the welfare context. By applying discrete-time event history models to nationally representative data, we estimated the probability of union dissolution for jobless and employed men and women across regions. Our results showed that, as contextual gender equality increases, differences by employment status diminish, and gender differences in the relationship between employment status and union dissolution virtually disappear - even in a country considered 'traditional' in terms of family and gender dynamics." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Bischofberger, Iren & Anke Jähnke (2023): "work & care" im Gesundheitswesen – Impulse für die bessere Vereinbarkeit von Erwerbstätigkeit und Angehörigenpflege. In: Gesundheits- und Sozialpolitik, Jg. 77, H. 2, S. 47-55. DOI:10.5771/1611-5821-2023-2-47

Abstract

"Das Gesundheitswesen ist mehrfach von der Vereinbarkeit von Beruf und Familie betroffen. Im Zentrum dieses Aufsatzes stehen Mitarbeitende von Gesundheitseinrichtungen mit hilfe- und pflegebedürftigen Nächsten und der Herausforderung, Erwerbstätigkeit und Angehörigenpflege zu vereinbaren. Der Beitrag zeichnet ihre „doppelte“ Lebenswelt nach, wechselt zur Perspektive der Gesundheitsbetriebe und skizziert den Weg zur Vereinbarkeitskompetenz." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Campaña, Juan Carlos, José Ignacio Giménez-Nadal & Jorge Velilla (2023): Measuring Gender Gaps in Time Allocation in Europe. In: Social indicators research, Jg. 165, H. 2, S. 519-553. DOI:10.1007/s11205-022-03026-0

Abstract

"This paper explores the gender gap in time allocation in European countries, offering a comparison of the 2000s and the 2010s, along with an explanation of the documented gender gaps, based on social norms and institutional factors. The results show that the gender gap in both paid and unpaid work has decreased in most countries, but with a significant level of cross-country heterogeneity in the size of the gender gaps. More traditional social norms are related to greater gender inequalities in paid and unpaid work, while countries with better family-friendly policies and a greater representation of women in politics and in the labour market exhibit smaller gender inequalities. This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of gender gaps in Europe, and attempts to monitor the progress towards the elimination of gender inequalities. Despite that some degree of gender convergence in paid and unpaid work has taken place, there remain inequalities in the distribution of labour in European countries, and possible solutions may be related to social norms and family-friendly policies." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

Casado-Díaz, José M., Raquel Simón-Albert & Hipólito Simón (2023): Gender Differences in Commuting: New Evidence from Spain. In: Social indicators research, Jg. 169, H. 3, S. 907-941. DOI:10.1007/s11205-023-03183-w

Abstract

"This article examines the origins of the shorter commutes typically observed for women, a phenomenon that contributes to the poorer work outcomes they typically suffer. The analysis extends previous research on the gender gap in commuting by using econometric decomposition techniques that are novel in this field which, combined with a Spanish nationally representative survey that allows for an exhaustive control of the different elements identified in the literature as possible determinants of gender differences in commuting to work, allows quantifying the specific influence of a wide range of individual, family, territorial and work-related elements. The evidence obtained shows that the gender gap in commuting is not the result of the relative characteristics of women, but of the presence of a systematic pattern of lower mobility that emerges when women are compared with observationally similar men. Yet, this pattern of lower mobility is not observed for certain groups of women whose behavior in the labor market is generally more egalitarian, such as women with higher education, without family responsibilities or without a partner, which is consistent with the presence of cultural or social constraints that tend to limit women's mobility." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

Casarico, Alessandra, Elena Del Rey & Jose I. Silva (2023): Child care costs, household liquidity constraints, and gender inequality. In: Journal of Population Economics, Jg. 36, H. 3, S. 1461-1487. DOI:10.1007/s00148-023-00936-2

Abstract

"In a model with endogenous female labour supply and wages, we show that liquidity constraints that prevent households from buying child care generate an inefficiency and amplify gender gaps in the labour market. We evaluate the relative merits of paid maternity leave, child care subsidies, and government loans in mitigating liquidity constraints and promoting gender equality. While an extension in the duration of the leave has ambiguous effects, child care subsidies and loans in the form of child care vouchers remove the liquidity constraints and reduce gender gaps in participation and wages. We illustrate the mechanisms at play in a numerical example using Spanish data." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

Cervini, Maria & Jose I. Silva (2023): Childcare restrictions and gender gap in labor outcomes. (MPRA paper / University Library of Munich 118957), München, 23 S.

Abstract

"Persistent gender gaps exist in labor market outcomes. This study contributes to the literature by examining the gender gap effects of childcare restrictions. Specifically, not using professional childcare services due to issues like access, quality, or costs. Using a specialized module from the 2018 Spanish Labor Force Survey, we identify substantial gender gaps in labor force, employment, full-time employment and hours worked among parents facing childcare constraints. In contrast, parents without such restrictions experience much lower gender gaps. Working time flexibility helps to alleviate the gender gap in hours worked. Additionally, we explore the long-run consequences of extended work interruptions for childcare, revealing a significant decline in women's labor supply, employment rates and full-time share, particularly for career breaks lasting 5 years or more." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

De La Porte, Caroline, Zhen Im, Brigitte Pircher, Nuria Ramos Martin & Dorota Szelewa (2023): An examination of 'instrumental resources' in earmarked parental leave: The case of the work–life balance directive. In: Journal of European Social Policy, Jg. 33, H. 5, S. 525-539. DOI:10.1177/09589287231207557

Abstract

"This article examines factors that could contribute to explaining variation in take-up of leave among fathers in the light of the EU’s Work–Life Balance Directive (WLBD). The WLBD seeks to equalize care responsibilities between fathers and mothers, especially through reserved leave, with high compensation. The article begins with a cross-country overview of take-up of leave among eligible fathers, considering earmarking and the degree of compensation. Our results show variation, which cannot fully be explained by policy design (presence of high compensation with reserved leave for fathers). The article then theorizes that instrumental resources – information and accessible administrative application procedures – could be a missing link to understand the actual shift from de jure to de facto social rights. The article then carries out embedded case studies on these two aspects of instrumental resources, using original qualitative data collected during the implementation of the WLBD. The most striking finding is that countries with similar formal implementation of earmarked paid parental leave, display significant differences in commitment to instrumental resources. Put differently, the WLBD is being implemented differently, not regarding formal social rights, but on instrumental resources. This finding is important because it means that EU-initiated legislation on parental leave, could lead to differences in outcomes, that is, take-up of leave among fathers. The implication of our findings is that decision-makers and policy actors at EU level and in member states, should focus more on instrumental resources in the implementation process. This is particularly important for enhancing the de facto legitimacy of the EU in social policy, given that EU social regulation is increasing via the European Pillar of Social Rights." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

De La Porte, Caroline, Zhen Jie Im, Brigitte Pircher & Dorota Szelewa (2023): The EU's work-life balance directive: Institutional change of father-specific leave across member states. In: Social Policy and Administration, Jg. 57, H. 4, S. 549-563. DOI:10.1111/spol.12920

Abstract

"This paper examines institutional change in father-specific leave - a centre-piece of the EU's work-life balance directive (WLBD) - from the perspective of gradual institutional change. The WLBD, a highly contentious directive, represents a litmus test for the possible impact of the European pillar of social rights (EPSR), on welfare state institutions, which are responsible for the organisation, financing and delivery of social rights in member states. The analysis comprises in-depth case studies in Denmark, Germany, France and Poland, with different combinations of family and parental leave policies prior to the WLBD. The findings reveal that the EU's directive is leading to convergence in paternity leave, but to divergence in parental leave. Our study is important because it shows that even if EU directives in social policy in principle can lead to upwards social convergence across the EU, when they are relatively weak in terms of precise constraint, for instance, for the level of remuneration for leave, this leads to differentiated integration. This could undermine the very purpose of the EPSR, which seeks to improve social rights for all citizens across the EU. Similar dynamics are likely to be present in other areas at the welfare state-labor market nexus, such as minimum wages or platform work, where the EU is also developing regulation under the auspices of the EPSR." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

Zitatform

Doorley, Karina, Dora Tuda & Luke Duggan (2023): Will Childcare Subsidies Increase the Labour Supply of Mothers in Ireland? (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 16178), Bonn, 28 S.

Abstract

"The cost of childcare has a significant impact on the decision of parents – particularly mothers – to work. Prior to the introduction of subsidies for formal childcare in Ireland in 2019 through the National Childcare Scheme (NCS), the cost of full-time centre-based childcare was among the most expensive in the OECD. Doorley et al. (2021) show that the introduction of the subsidy scheme improved childcare affordability. In this paper, we investigate the effects of the scheme on the labour supply and childcare choices of mothers. We model the joint decision of labour supply and childcare for lone and coupled mothers of children under six. Mothers are likely to respond to the introduction of childcare subsidies in 2019 by switching from informal childcare to formal childcare (11ppt), but not by increasing their participation in the labour market. We estimate that recent (2023) reforms of the NCS, which increase the generosity and the scope of the subsidy, will increase mothers' participation by 3% and full-time work by 4%, but also substantially decrease the demand for informal childcare. A hypothetical abolition of all childcare costs would close the gender employment gap, increasing mothers' participation by 30 ppt." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Erkal, Nisvan, Lata Gangadharan & Boon Han Koh (2023): Discrimination in Evaluation Criteria: The Role of Beliefs versus Outcomes. (Department of Economics discussion papers / University of Exeter, Business School 2023,16), Exeter, 32 S.

Abstract

"Using incentivized experiments, we investigate whether different criteria are used in evaluating male and female leaders when outcomes are determined by unobservable choices and luck. Evaluators form beliefs about leaders' choices and make discretionary payments. We find that while payments to male leaders are determined by both outcomes and evaluators' beliefs, those to female leaders are determined by outcomes only. We label this new source of gender bias as the gender criteria gap. Our findings imply that high outcomes are necessary for women to get bonuses, but men can receive bonuses for low outcomes as long as evaluators hold them in high regard." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Fernandes, Ana, Martin Huber & Camila Plaza (2023): When does gender occupational segregation start? An experimental evaluation of the effects of gender and parental occupation in the apprenticeship labor market. In: Economics of Education Review, Jg. 95. DOI:10.1016/j.econedurev.2023.102399

Abstract

"The apprenticeship market is the earliest possible entry point into the workforce in developed economies. Since early labor market shocks are likely magnified throughout professional life, avoiding mismatches between talent and occupations – for example due to gender- or status-based discrimination – appears crucial. This experimental study investigates the effects of applicant gender and its interaction with parental occupation on the probability of receiving an invitation to an interview in the Swiss apprenticeship labor market. We find no robust evidence of differential treatment by employers in most cases. Policies aimed at fostering gender equality across occupations should therefore focus on removing gender related educational or cultural barriers influencing occupational choices at young ages." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2023 Elsevier) ((en))

Zitatform

Fiori, Francesca & Giorgio Di Gessa (2023): Influences on Employment Transitions around the Birth of the First Child: The Experience of Italian Mothers. In: Work, Employment and Society, Jg. 37, H. 1, S. 196-214. DOI:10.1177/09500170221082479

Abstract

"Urban and regional research has focused on opportunity entrepreneurship and how cities can promote growth through the ‘right’ type of entrepreneurship. This neglects the increasing risk of precarious self-employment reflected in the compositional change of self-employment towards self-employment with no employees (‘solo self-employment’). This article tests whether precarious self-employment is more prevalent in urban areas, in parallel to more entrepreneurial forms as shown in previous research. Based on the European Working Conditions Survey 2015 and including 30 countries, it proposes a multidimensional empirical framework of precariousness of self-employment. Findings show significant variations in the prevalence of precarious self-employment in urban versus non-urban areas across geographical regions. Some individual characteristics (gender) and job-related characteristics (industry and working at home) are related with an increased risk of precariousness in urban areas. Policies therefore need to go beyond regulatory and legal frameworks and target local conditions of self-employment." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))" (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Gao, Kaibo & Zhongjing Tian (2023): The Effect of Motherhood on Wages: are women's wage penalties due to lack of career aspirations? In: Applied Economics, Jg. 55, H. 54, S. 6410-6426. DOI:10.1080/00036846.2022.2156469

Abstract

"Mothers’ wages tend to be lower than those of equivalent childless women, and many researchers have reported on this ‘motherhood wage penalty’. We explore the relationship between pre-school children and their mothers’ wages to estimate the short-term effects of the ‘motherhood wage penalty’ and test the mechanisms of the ‘motherhood wage penalty’ in terms of changes in mothers’ mindsets. In addition, a novel instrumental variable was found. Based on data from the China Family Panel Studies, we find that children in China have a significant negative impact on the increase in mothers’ wages. The penalty is most severe for the low-income group. The reduction in mothers’ career enthusiasm after childbirth explains only 3.5% of the wage gap, suggesting that the wage penalty for mothers may come mainly from extrinsic factors. In addition, we find that grandparent care and the establishment of public childcare centres are effective in mitigating the ‘motherhood wage penalty’, and that delaying retirement may be detrimental to mothers’ wage increases." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Gevrek, Z. Eylem & Deniz Gevrek (2023): Social norms and the gender gap in labor force participation: Evidence from Turkey. In: Applied Economics Letters, Jg. 30, H. 15, S. 2102-2107. DOI:10.1080/13504851.2022.2094315

Abstract

"We use a novel two-step empirical strategy to examine the relationship between social norms and the gender gap in labour force participation (LFP) across provinces of Turkey. In the first step, we identify the unexplained part of the gender gap in LFP that remains after accounting for differences in observed characteristics between women and men for each province by implementing a decomposition method. In the second step, we investigate the role of social norms in explaining cross-province variation in the unexplained part. The results reveal that more egalitarian gender role attitudes, smaller gender gap in tertiary education, lower fertility and consanguineous marriage rates, and lower level of religiosity significantly predict a smaller unexplained part of the gender gap in LFP favouring males." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))