scholarly journals Gendered Tradeoffs

2020 ◽  
pp. 249-266
Author(s):  
Jennifer L. Hook ◽  
Meiying Li
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
National Level ◽  
Unintended Consequences ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Women's Labor ◽  
Family Policies ◽  
Market Outcomes ◽  
Promote Gender Equality

AbstractIn this chapter we review the research linking national-level family policies on childcare services and parental leave to women’s labor market outcomes. We review the state of the literature in answering two primary questions: (1) Do generous family policies perpetuate gender inequality in the labor market? That is, do family policies have unintended consequences or promote women’s inclusion into the labor force at the expense of gender equality within it? (2) Do generous family policies promote gender equality for certain groups of women at the expense of other groups of women? In answering this second question we focus on how policies differentially affect women by social class. We conclude with directions for future research.

scholarly journals Work–family reconciliation policies and women’s and mothers’ labor market outcomes in rich democracies

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 125-161 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Brady ◽  
Agnes Blome ◽  
Julie A Kmec
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Labor Market Outcomes ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Market Outcomes ◽  
Work Family ◽  
Market Consequences ◽  
Reconciliation Policies

Abstract Prominent research has claimed that work–family reconciliation policies trigger ‘tradeoffs’ and ‘paradoxes’ in terms of gender equality with adverse labor market consequences for women. These claims have greatly influenced debates regarding social policy, work, family and gender inequality. Motivated by limitations of prior research, we analyze the relationship between the two most prominent work–family reconciliation policies (paid parental leave and public childcare coverage) and seven labor market outcomes (employment, full-time employment, earnings, full-time earnings, being a manager, being a lucrative manager and occupation percent female). We estimate multilevel models of individuals nested in a cross-section of 21 rich democracies near 2005, and two-way fixed effects models of individuals nested in a panel of 12 rich democracies over time. The vast majority of coefficients for work–family policies fail to reject the null hypothesis of no effects. The pattern of insignificance occurs regardless of which set of models or coefficients one compares. Moreover, there is as much evidence that significantly contradicts the ‘tradeoff hypothesis’ as is consistent with the hypothesis. Altogether, the analyses undermine claims that work–family reconciliation policies trigger trade-offs and paradoxes in terms of gender equality with adverse labor market consequences for women.

scholarly journals Work-Family Reconciliation Policies and Women's and Mothers' Labor Market Outcomes in Rich Democracies

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Brady ◽  
Agnes Blome ◽  
Julie A. Kmec
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Labor Market Outcomes ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Market Outcomes ◽  
Work Family ◽  
Market Consequences ◽  
Reconciliation Policies

Prominent research has claimed that work-family reconciliation policies trigger “tradeoffs” and “paradoxes” in terms of gender equality with adverse labor market consequences for women. These claims have greatly influenced debates regarding social policy, work, family, and gender inequality. Motivated by limitations of prior research, we analyze the relationship between the two most prominent work-family reconciliation policies (paid parental leave and public childcare coverage) and seven labor market outcomes (employment, full-time employment, earnings, full-time earnings, being a manager, being a lucrative manager, and occupation percent female). We estimate multi-level models of individuals nested in a cross-section of 21 rich democracies near 2005, and two-way fixed effects models of individuals nested in a panel of 12 rich democracies over time. The vast majority of coefficients for work-family policies fail to reject the null hypothesis of no effects. The pattern of insignificance occurs regardless of which set of models or coefficients one compares. Moreover, there is as much evidence that significantly contradicts the “tradeoff hypothesis” as is consistent with the hypothesis. Altogether, the analyses undermine claims that work-family reconciliation policies trigger tradeoffs and paradoxes in terms of gender equality with adverse labor market consequences for women.

scholarly journals The Fragility of Women’s Work Trajectories in Chile

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 148
Author(s):  
Rosario Undurraga ◽  
Jóna Gunnarsson
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Social Development ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Market Segmentation ◽  
Women Professionals ◽  
Women's Labor ◽  
Labor Market Segmentation ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Chilean Women

How are the work trajectories of Chilean women? This qualitative study analyzes the female work trajectories through interviews and biograms in a sample of 50 Chilean women, professionals and non-professionals, between the ages of 24 and 88. The article proposes an original typology of female work trajectories and relates type of work trajectory with Piore’s theory of labor market segmentation. The paper discusses the challenges and weaknesses of the Chilean women’s labor outcome and presents recent data to extrapolate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on vulnerable work trajectories. It considers the type of State and possible actions to achieve greater welfare and social development regarding gender equality.

Is maternal labor market re-entry after childbirth facilitated by mothers’ and partners’ flextime?

2019 ◽  
Vol 73 (8) ◽  
pp. 1106-1128
Author(s):  
Yvonne Lott
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
Event History Analysis ◽  
Family Policy ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
National Level ◽  
Past Research ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Policy Reforms ◽  
Life Balance

How do national-level work–life balance policies shape the role of flextime in maternal labor market re-entry after childbirth? It is well known that such policies influence the adoption, provision, and support of flexible work arrangements by organizations, but whether they shape the relevance of these arrangements for workers has been neglected in past research. This article analyzes whether mothers’ and partners’ flextime facilitates maternal labor market re-entry after childbirth in Germany, where family policy reforms have been implemented in the last two decades. Event history analysis based on German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) data from the years 2003–2013 revealed that mothers were more likely to re-enter the labor market if they had used flextime before childbirth. However, this effect existed only before the implementation of family policy reforms, namely the introduction of parental leave in 2007 and the expansion of public childcare. Moreover, the use of flextime before childbirth did not encourage mothers to maintain previous work hours (the legal right to work part time has existed in Germany since 2001). Partners’ use of flextime before childbirth was found to be less relevant for mothers’ return to work after childbirth. The analysis indicates that generous national-level work–life balance policies can diminish the effectiveness of organizational work–life balance policies for mothers’ employment behavior.

scholarly journals Managers’ views on employees’ parental leave: Problems and solutions within different institutional logics

2018 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tanja H Nordberg
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Institutional Logics ◽  
Career Progression ◽  
Law Firms ◽  
Family Policies ◽  
The Public ◽  
Central Values ◽  
Problems And Solutions

An examination of managers’ perspectives on employees’ parental leave rights is presented, drawing on qualitative interviews with 34 managers in the Norwegian police and in the legal profession. The aim of the article is to explore how managers approach employees’ parental leave within different institutional logics and how their approach relates to gendered norms of good parenthood. According to these norms, parental leave is used fully, but mothers take the main share of the leave. The findings show that the managers do not necessarily perceive parental leave as a problem. However, the practical solutions the managers propose to possible challenges give important clues about what parental leave entails within the frame of different institutional logics. The managers’ concerns reveal that parental leave rights may clash with central values, goals and strategies in an organisation. Within the logics of the police and private law firms, work is more individualised and thus perceived as more challenging than in the public sector law offices. When the solution suggested by the managers is for individual employees to adapt their leave, gendered norms come forward. However, the analysis also shows that gendered parenthood norms play out differently with the different institutional logics. With these insights, the analysis shows how policy regulations and local workplace contexts interact in shaping the consequences of family policies for gender equality in wages and career progression

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