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Piasna, Agnieszka & Anke C. Plagnol (2016): Arbeitsplatzqualität und weibliche Erwerbsbeteiligung in Europa. In: WSI-Mitteilungen, Jg. 69, H. 4, S. 273-282. DOI:10.5771/0342-300X-2016-4-273

Abstract

"Zahlreiche Untersuchungen belegen, dass die Entscheidung zur beruflichen Weiterarbeit nach der Familiengründung einerseits von persönlichen Umständen abhängt, wie der Notwendigkeit, zum Haushaltseinkommen beizutragen, andererseits aber auch von institutionellen Einflussgrößen wie dem Angebot an erschwinglichen Kinderbetreuungsplätzen. Ergänzend hierzu untersuchen wir anhand von Daten des European Working Conditions Surveys, inwieweit die Qualität der Arbeitsplätze die Erwerbsbiografie von Frauen in den EU-27-Ländern beeinflusst. Unsere Analyse betrachtet drei Einzeldimensionen: Arbeitsplatzsicherheit, Arbeitszeitqualität und intrinsische Arbeitsqualität. Wir stellen fest, dass die Arbeitsplatzqualität von Müttern kleiner Kinder im Schnitt höher ist als die von Frauen ohne betreuungspflichtige Kinder, insbesondere hinsichtlich Arbeitszeit und Beschäftigungssicherheit. Die Untersuchungsergebnisse belegen für die gesamte EU-27 einen weitgehend einheitlichen Zusammenhang zwischen dem Status von Frauen als Mütter kleiner Kinder und der Arbeitsplatzqualität." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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Pollmann-Schult, Matthias (2016): What mothers want: The impact of structural and cultural factors on mothers' preferred working hours in Western Europe. In: Advances in life course research, Jg. 29, H. September, S. 16-25. DOI:10.1016/j.alcr.2015.11.002

Abstract

"This study investigates how social policies, gender norms, and the national working time regime shape mothers' preferred working hours. Using data from the European Social Survey (ESS) for 15 countries across Western Europe, the study reveals that generous public child care and cultural support for gender equality are associated with smaller gaps in the preferred working hours between mothers and childless women. High levels of financial support for families, in contrast, predict larger gaps in preferred working hours. The analysis also indicates that a low prevalence of non-standard work and high levels of work-time flexibility reduce the differences in preferred employment hours between mothers and non-mothers. Individual characteristics such as education, gender ideology, and the partners' socioeconomic status greatly impact women's preferred employment hours; however, they do not modify the effect of motherhood. This study concludes that the impact of parenthood on women's employment hours is highly contingent upon various institutional and cultural factors." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

Abstract

"Time and time again it has been proven that more diverse organisations not only outperform those which are less diverse, but are also most likely to attract and retain the most talented professionals.
In addition, the link between women in the workplace and a country's economic growth is closely connected. Despite this, globally women are not paid or rewarded equally to their male colleagues and remain underrepresented in the workplace, as well as proportionally less represented in senior roles.
In compiling this report and recommendations, we spoke to over 11,500 women and men, asking their opinion and views on women in the world of work today.
While the findings vary by country and by sector, we have discovered common themes and sometimes surprising results about what can be done by business leaders today to ensure that women continue to advance in their careers and achieve better representation at senior levels. Our findings are also accompanied with insight from a number of successful women at the top of their professions, who share their experience from both a personal and professional perspective. Although gender diversity has improved and we have seen less of a disparity in the views and experiences between men and women, when compared to our 2015 report, our research shows that organisations can still do significantly more to narrow the gap. They hold the key to advancing women in the workplace and have an opportunity and responsibility to close the gender divide.
This report has been compiled using data gathered between November 2015 and January 2016. The findings of our gender diversity report are based on a survey of over 11,500 male and female respondents from across the world (57% female, 42% male and 1% preferring not to say).
We have used country specific data where there was a minimum of 100 responses per country: Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Dieckhoff, Martina, Vanessa Gash & Nadia Steiber (2015): Measuring the effect of institutional change on gender inequality in the labour market. In: Research in Social Stratification and Mobility, Jg. 39, H. March, S. 59-75. DOI:10.1016/j.rssm.2014.12.001

Abstract

"This article examines the differential impact of labour market institutions on women and men. It carries out longitudinal analyses using repeat cross-sectional data from the EU Labour Force Survey 1992 - 2007 as well as time series data that measure institutional change over the same period. The results contribute to the literature on gendered employment, adding important insights into the impact of labour market institutions over and above family policies that have been the focus of most prior studies on the topic. We find differential effects of institutional change on male and female outcome. Our findings challenge the neo-classical literature on the topic. While our results suggest that men benefit more clearly than women from increases in employment protection, we do not find support for the neo-classical assertion that strong trade unions decrease female employment. Instead, increasing union strength is shown to have beneficial effects for both men's and women's likelihood of being employed on the standard employment contract. Furthermore, in line with other researchers, we find that rising levels of in kind state support to families improve women's employment opportunities." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Guetto, Raffaele, Ruud Luijkx & Stefani Scherer (2015): Religiosity, gender attitudes and women's labour market participation and fertility decisions in Europe. In: Acta sociologica, Jg. 58, H. 2, S. 155-172. DOI:10.1177/0001699315573335

Abstract

"The Second Demographic Transition (SDT) theory underlines the importance of changing values and attitudes to explain the trend toward low fertility and raising female labour market participation. We contribute to this debate comparing religiosity and gender attitudes over several European countries using three waves of the European Values Study (1990, 1999 and 2008). By dealing with the issues of measurement invariance and endogeneity between values and behaviour, our results support some critiques of the SDT theory. The pace of the process of sociocultural change has not been the same across European countries and the forerunners of the SDT, that is, the most secularized and gender-egalitarian societies, now have the highest female labour market participation rates and the highest fertility. We provide evidence for a 'macro - micro paradox' regarding the role of values on family behaviours. Religiosity is positively correlated with fertility and housewifery, while gender attitudes are only correlated with women's labour market decisions. These correlations are stronger in more traditional countries, even if aggregate fertility is lower. We stress the necessity to integrate cultural and structural explanations, suggesting the lack of family policies and the rigidity of the family formation process as possible mechanisms to unravel this paradox." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Koelet, Suzana, Helga de Valk, Ignace Glorieux, Ilse Laurijssen & Didier Willaert (2015): The timing of family commitments in the early work career. Work-family trajectories of young adults in Flanders. In: Demographic Research, Jg. 32, S. 657-690. DOI:10.4054/DemRes.2015.32.22

Abstract

"Objective: This article examines the diverse ways in which young adults develop both their professional career and family life in the years immediately after they complete their education. Building a career and starting a family often occur simultaneously in this stage of life. By studying the simultaneous developments in these life domains, we can gain a better understanding of this complex interplay.
Methods: The data consist of a sample of 1,657 young adults born in 1976 who were interviewed as part of the SONAR survey of Flanders at ages 23, 26, and 29 about their education, their entry into and early years on the labour market, and their family life. Sequence analysis is used to study the timing of union formation and having children among these young adults, as well as how these events are related to their work career. Multinomial regression analysis is applied to help us gain a better understanding of the extent to which these life course patterns are determined by education and economic status at the start of the career.
Results: The results reveal a set of work-family trajectories which vary in terms of the extent of labour market participation and the type and timing of family formation. Various aspects of the trajectory are found to be determined by different dimensions of an individual's educational career (duration, level, field of study). Education is more relevant for women than for men, as a man's trajectory is more likely than a woman's to be determined by the first job.
Conclusions: By using a simultaneous approach which takes into account both family and work, this life course analysis confirms that men have a head start on the labour market, and examines the factors which influence the distinct trajectories of young women and men." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Koutentakis, Franciscos (2015): Gender unemployment dynamics. Evidence from ten advanced economies. In: Labour, Jg. 29, H. 1, S. 15-31. DOI:10.1111/labr.12044

Abstract

"The paper investigates gender unemployment dynamics in 10 advances economies applying a recent methodology on widely available Labour Force Surveys data. We calculate the job finding and separation rates for each gender and use them to construct the steady-state unemployment gap as well as two counterfactual gender unemployment gaps: one generated by differences only in job finding rates and the other by differences only in separation rates. We find that in all countries the gender unemployment gap attributed to differences in the job finding rate is lower than the gap attributed to differences in the separation rate, suggesting that gender differences in the separation rate are the major factor behind the gender unemployment gap." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Abendroth, Anja-Kristin, Matt L. Huffman & Judith Treas (2014): The parity penalty in life course perspective. Motherhood and occupational status in 13 European countries. In: American Sociological Review, Jg. 79, H. 5, S. 993-1014. DOI:10.1177/0003122414545986

Abstract

"Research documents a wage penalty for mothers compared to childless women. We demonstrate there is also an occupational status penalty to motherhood. Interrogating supply- and demand-side explanations of the motherhood penalty from the life course perspective, we formulate and test original hypotheses about the short-term and long-run career implications of parity-specific births. We analyze longitudinal data from the European Community and Household Panel for 13 European countries and eight time points between 1994 and 2001. Our fixed-effects models show that status losses for a first birth are not just short-term but accumulate over the career. The timing of a birth in a woman's life course matters only for older women, who experience a significant penalty to third births. Although the personal strategies that women use to minimize the career costs of motherhood (e.g., having only one child) prove ineffective, our cross-national evidence shows that public policies are linked to the motherhood penalty in occupational status." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Mendolicchio, Concetta & Thomas Rhein (2014): The gender gap of returns on education across West European countries. In: International journal of manpower, Jg. 35, H. 3, S. 219-249., 2013-08-18.

Abstract

"We study the gender specific private returns on education (RE) in Europe in a comparative perspective. We extend the model of de la Fuente (2003) by estimating the parameters by gender and introducing maternity leaves and benefits. We analyse the impact of the public policy variables evaluating the elasticities with respect to unemployment benefits, marginal and average tax rates, maternity leave and childcare benefits.
We estimate the Mincerian coefficients, with the Heckman selection model, for 12 West European countries using the EU-SILC data (2007). We then use them as input to calibrate the decision model.
The RE of females tend to be higher than those of males in all the Europeans countries but Germany, Netherlands and Sweden. The gender gap can be explained mainly by the wage premia and labour income taxes which more than compensate the negative effects on females' returns triggered by higher unemployment rates and maternity-related benefits.
The tax system has the most pronounced effect on RE. An increase in the marginal tax rates has a negative impact. An increase in the average tax rates can have a negative or positive impact, depending on the progressivity of the tax system. An increase in unemployment benefits and maternity or child-care benefits has a negative but fairly small impact.
We compute the RE using a model which allows us to take into account and assess the significance of relevant variables: wage premium, income tax, some public transfers and benefits, costs of the investments. Moreover, we estimate the wage premia using relatively recent EU-SILC data. Finally, we compare 12 EU countries spanning quite different labour market conditions and institutions." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Cooke, Lynn Prince, Jani Erola, Marie Evertsson, Michael Gähler, Juho Härkönen, Belinda Hewitt, Marika Jalovaara, Man-Yee Kan, Torkild Hovde Lyngstad, Letizia Mencarini, Jean-Francois Mignot, Dimitri Mortelmans, Anne-Rigt Poortman, Christian Schmitt & Heike Trappe (2013): Labor and love. Wives' employment and divorce risk in its socio-political context. In: Social Politics, Jg. 20, H. 4, S. 482-509. DOI:10.1093/sp/jxt016

Abstract

"We theorize how social policy affects marital stability vis-a-vis macro and micro effects of wives' employment on divorce risk in 11 Western countries. Correlations among 1990s aggregate data on marriage, divorce, and wives' employment rates, along with attitudinal and social policy information, seem to support specialization hypotheses that divorce rates are higher where more wives are employed and where policies support that employment. This is an ecological fallacy, however, because of the nature of the changes in specific countries. At the micro level, we harmonize national longitudinal data on the most recent cohort of wives marrying for the first time and find that the stabilizing effects of a gendered division of labor have ebbed. In the United States with its lack of policy support, a wife's employment still significantly increases the risk of divorce. A wife's employment has no significant effect on divorce risk in Australia, Flanders, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. In Finland, Norway, and Sweden, wives' employment predicts a significantly lower risk of divorce when compared with wives who are out of the labor force. The results indicate that greater policy support for equality reduces and may even reverse the relative divorce risk associated with a wife's employment." (Text excerpt, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Gerecke, Megan (2013): A policy mix for gender equality? Lessons from high-income countries. (International Institute for Labour Studies. Discussion paper 215), Genf, 74 S.

Abstract

"Over the past 15 years, important gains have been made in gender equality. Gender gaps in educational attainment have shrunk substantially. In fact, in many high-income countries, young women's educational attainment now exceeds that of young men. At the same time, most countries have seen a significant increase in female employment rates - a trend which slowed only with the recent financial crisis." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Heimeshoff, Lisa-Marie & Helen Schwenken (2013): "Das bisschen Haushalt ... sagt mein Mann" - Die politische Regulierung von Hausarbeit und Implikationen für die geschlechtliche Arbeitsteilung. In: Arbeit. Zeitschrift für Arbeitsforschung, Arbeitsgestaltung und Arbeitspolitik, Jg. 22, H. 3, S. 199-211. DOI:10.1515/arbeit-2013-0305

Abstract

"Die ungleiche geschlechtliche Arbeitsteilung von Betreuungs- und Haushaltstätigkeiten ist persistent und wird, wie Zeitnutzungsstudien zeigen, auch nicht verändert durch eine partielle Auslagerung an Hausangestellte oder externe Dienstleister. In der EU wird der Sektor als Wachstumsmarkt begriffen. Der Beitrag analysiert Ansätze der politischen Regulierung von Haushalts- und Betreuungsarbeit in Bezug auf die sich daraus ergebenden Implikationen für die geschlechtliche und internationale Arbeitsteilung. Es wird die These vertreten, dass eine geschlechtergerechtere Arbeitsteilung kein Anliegen der Regulierungsanstrengungen ist und diese sogar eher restaurative Effekte zeigt, die auf die Externalisierung und weitere Kommodifizierung dieser Arbeiten deuten und einen Klassenbias in sich tragen. Der Beitrag nimmt die politischen Regulierungen in Deutschland sowie französische und belgische Haushaltsscheckmodelle in den Blick. Letztere gelten als gesellschaftlich breit akzeptierte Maßnahme zur Formalisierung des Sektors. Der Beitrag schließt mit einer Problematisierung der in die Regulierungen eingelassenen Trennung von Produktions- und Reproduktionssphäre, die mit Ursache für die fortgesetzte geschlechterhierarchische Arbeitsteilung ist. Daher lohnt sich das Wiederaufgreifen von Vorschlägen zu integrierenderen Perspektiven, in denen die Kommodifizierung nicht weiter "banalisiert" (Jany-Catrice), sondern thematisiert wird." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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Triventi, Moris (2013): The gender wage gap and its institutional context. A comparative analysis of European graduates. In: Work, employment and society, Jg. 27, H. 4, S. 563-580. DOI:10.1177/0950017012460322

Abstract

"This article examines whether there is a gender gap in monthly wages among recent graduates in 11 European countries, and which variables account for it. We extend previous works considering a broader range of variables including perceived skills, responsibility at work, family obligations and attitudes to family and work. Regression analyses applied to data from the 'Research into Employment and professional FLEXibility' (REFLEX) survey (2005) show that in all countries there is a significant 'raw wage gap', but with noticeable cross-country variation. Decomposition analyses show that the 'residual wage gap' (discrimination) is lower in Nordic countries and higher in the Czech Republic, with the United Kingdom, continental and southern European countries placed in between them. Employment characteristics and working hours are the most important factors accounting for the gender gap. Wage discrimination is lower in countries with high trade union density, centralized collective bargaining, family-friendly policies, and high level of women's empowerment in society." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Vercruyssen, Anina & Bart van de Putte (2013): Work-family conflict and stress: indications of the distinctiveness of role combination stress for Belgian working mothers. In: Community, work & family, Jg. 16, H. 4, S. 351-371. DOI:10.1080/13668803.2013.776515

Abstract

"Research on the relation between work-family conflict (WFC) and stress focuses either on domain/role-specific stress (e.g. work stress), which is by definition and, operationalisation attributed to the respective role, or it focuses on 'general' stress, which can be a too broad or too general concept to measure stress related to WFC. This study introduces the concept of 'role combination stress' to indicate a stress that is more specifically related to the work-family role system and WFC than general and role-specific stress. The analysis of data on 429 Flemish working mothers shows that role combination stress is indeed a distinct type of stress." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Bothfeld, Silke (2012): Kindererziehung und Pflegezeiten: Wie anpassungsfähig sind die Sozialversicherungssysteme? Deutschland im internationalen Vergleich. (ZeS-Arbeitspapier 2012/03), Bremen, 59 S.

Abstract

"Idealtypisch basieren Sozialversicherungssysteme Bismarck'scher Prägung auf dem Beitrags- und Äquivalenzprinzip, sie haben die Erwerbsarbeit zum Ausgangspunkt und die Lebensstandardsicherung der Beitragszahlenden (und deren Familien) zum Ziel. In Ländern wie Deutschland, Belgien, Österreich und Frankreich ist eine kontinuierliche, vollzeitige bzw. durchschnittlich entlohnte Erwerbsarbeit daher eine notwendige Voraussetzung für eine hinreichende Absicherung bei Arbeitslosigkeit oder im Alter. Für die Absicherung der 'neuen sozialen Risken' Kinderbetreuung und Pflege bieten sie somit tendenziell ungünstige Ausgangsbedingungen; betreuende und pflegende Personen sind durch das Konstrukt der 'Versorgerehe' auf den familiären Haushalt verwiesen.
Die vergleichende Wohlfahrtsstaatsforschung hat in den vergangenen Jahren ein wachsendes Interesse am Wandel des Bismarck'schen Wohlfahrtsstaates entwickelt, dem lange Zeit ein starkes Beharrungsvermögen bei gleichzeitig anwachsender Dysfunktionalität unterstellt wurde. Während über den Rückbau der Systeme umfassende Erkenntnisse vorliegen, ist relativ wenig bekannt über Expansionstendenzen, die dem Äquivalenzprinzip, aber auch der allgemeinen Tendenz des Rückbaus sozialer Sicherungssysteme entgegenlaufen. Die vorliegende Studie untersucht die Policies, die in den vier typischen Sozialversicherungsstaaten für die Absicherung von Pflegenden und Kinder Betreuenden in der Arbeitslosen- und Rentenversicherung in den vergangenen 20 Jahren institutionalisiert wurden.
Die mehrfach vergleichende Analyse macht Folgendes deutlich. Erstens, kommt der Versorgerehe trotz ihrer teilweisen 'Modernisierung' eine nach wie vor große Bedeutung zu - vor allem bei der Alterssicherung von Eltern und Pflegepersonen. Damit bleibt ein zentrales Strukturmotiv konservativ-korporatistischer Sozialstaaten weitgehend erhalten. Zweitens wird jedoch durch die arbeitsrechtliche Institutionalisierung von Freistellungsphasen und deren sozialrechtlicher Sicherung in allen vier Ländern der Verweis auf den ehelichen Kontext 'entschärft'. Allerdings gilt dies in vollem Maße nur für Kinder betreuende Personen, die sowohl in der Arbeitslosen- als auch der Rentenversicherung während der gesetzlichen Freistellungsphasen Erwerbstätigen vergleichbar gut abgesichert sind, während für Pflegepersonen nach wie vor wichtige Sicherungslücken entstehen können. Drittens lassen sich im internationalen Vergleich idiosynkratische Entwicklungen erkennen, so dass eine im Hinblick auf ein großzügiges Sicherungsniveau von Erziehenden und Pflegenden gerichtete Policy 'gute Praktiken' aus allen vier Ländern zusammenführen würde. Grundsätzlich gleichen spezifische Ausgleichsregeln jedoch immer nur die akute Unterbrechung an Beitragszahlungen aus, nicht aber die reduzierten Einkommens- und Aufstiegschancen, Senioritätsgewinne oder Arbeitsmarktrisiken, die durch Erwerbsunterbrechungen oder Teilzeitphasen entstehen." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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Mandel, Hadas (2012): Winners and losers: the consequences of welfare state policies for gender wage inequality. In: European Sociological Review, Jg. 28, H. 2, S. 241-262. DOI:10.1093/esr/jcq061

Abstract

"Cross-national studies of the impact of welfare states on gender inequality tend to overlook socio-economic divisions among women. This article challenges the implicit assumption that welfare states have uniform effects on the economic attainments of women, arguing that the impact of state intervention is necessarily conditioned by women's relative advantage or disadvantage in the labour market. Based on Luxembourg Income Study microdata for 21 advanced countries, the paper analyses gender wage gaps among highly skilled and low skilled men and women. The findings suggest that welfare state policies interact with socio-economic position: they limit the economic rewards of highly skilled women, but do not adversely affect, and by some measures actually benefit, those who are less skilled. Highlighting the advantages and disadvantages of social policies for different groups of women, the article concludes that more research is needed to explore differentiated approaches to reconciling work and family, rather than addressing universal work - family tensions." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Anghel, Brindusa, Sara de la Rica & Juan J. Dolado (2011): The effect of public sector employment on women's labour market outcomes. (IZA discussion paper 5825), Bonn, 62 S.

Abstract

"This paper addresses the role played by Public Sector (PS) employment across different OECD labour markets in explaining: (i) gender differences regarding choices to work in either PS or private sector, and (ii) subsequent changes in female labour market outcomes. To do so, we provide some empirical evidence about cross-country gender differences in choice of employment in the PS vs. the private sector, using the European Community Household Panel (ECHP), in the light of different theories on gender behaviour in the labour market. We also analyze the main determinants of the hourly wage gaps across these two sectors for males and females separately. Finally, we document the main stylized facts about labour market transitions by male and female workers among inactivity, unemployment, working in the PS and working in the private sector." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Olivetti, Claudia & Barbara Petrongolo (2011): Gender gaps across countries and skills. Supply, demand and the industry structure. (CEP discussion paper 1093), London, 42 S.

Abstract

"The gender wage gap varies widely across countries and across skill groups within countries. Interestingly, there is a positive cross-country correlation between the unskilled-to-skilled gender wage gap and the corresponding gap in hours worked. Based on a canonical supply and demand framework, this positive correlation would reveal the presence of net demand forces shaping gender differences in labor market outcomes across skills and countries. We use a simple multi-sector framework to illustrate how differences in labor demand for different inputs can be driven by both within-industry and between-industry factors. The main idea is that, if the service sector is more developed in the US than in continental Europe, and unskilled women tend to be over-represented in this sector, we expect unskilled women to suffer a relatively large wage and/or employment penalty in the latter than in the former. We find that, overall, the between-industry component of labor demand explains more than half of the total variation in labor demand between the US and the majority of countries in our sample, as well as one-third of the correlation between wage and hours gaps. The between-industry component is relatively more important in countries where the relative demand for unskilled females is lowest." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Brugiavini, Agar, Giacomo Pasini & Elisabetta Trevisan (2010): Maternity and labour market outcome. Short and long term effects. (Mannheim Research Institute for the Economics of Aging. Discussion paper 222), Mannheim, 12 S.

Abstract

"The aim of this paper is to till this gap by analyzing the long term effects of childbearing, i.e. the effect of motherhood on pension income at retirement, given the labour market participation of women at childbirth. Since labour market attachment is higher for younger generations, it is relevant for policy makers to Look at the behaviour of women who want to work excluding those who plan a 'family-life' (see also Lyberaki et al. in chapter 12 of this volume). SHARELIFE is particularly suitable for this analysis since it contains complete life time histories, including all the employment and maternity episodes experienced by European women currently aged 50 and over. Moreover, details on maternity leave provisions and other institutional features of the SHARE countries are collected and provided together with the survey data. These institutional features allow us to investigate if and how the presence of maternity benefits affects the labour market participation decisions of women after childbirth and, consequently, the impact of pension income at retirement." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Hummelsheim, Dina & Jochen Hirschle (2010): Mother's employment: cultural imprint or institutional governance? Belgium, West and East Germany in comparison. In: European Societies, Jg. 12, H. 3, S. 339-366. DOI:10.1080/14616691003596973

Abstract

"In the public and scientific discussion on the political scope of action for improving employment opportunities for mothers, cultural aspects of female labour market participation often remain ignored. This study argues that employment decisions of mothers vary not only with the institutional settings but also with the dominant representative culture of a region. In order to study the effects of culture and institutions on maternal employment, Belgium, East, and West Germany are selected for empirical analysis. In a first step the article demonstrates that these regions differ considerably in terms of family political measures but also in terms of the cultural orientations with regard to female employment. While both Belgium and East Germany (but not West Germany) have well-developed public childcare systems for the under-3s, East Germans have a more favourable opinion towards female employment than Belgians. In a second step the study shows by means of panel analyses that these cultural differences strongly determine female employment behavior. Results indicate that both East and West German mothers have significantly higher employment probabilities in the long-run than Belgian mothers. The well-developed childcare infrastructure and the short parental leave lead only temporarily - right after childbirth - to higher employment rates among Belgian mothers. With increasing age of the child the significance of cultural dispositions result in higher overall employment probabilities among German mothers. These empirical findings support the theoretical approach of Pfau-Effinger in treating both institutional structures and culture as (equally) crucial factors in explaining cross-national differences in mothers' employment." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))