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on Demographic Economics |
| By: | Margareta Kreimer (University of Graz); Ricardo Mora (Universidad Carlos III) |
| Abstract: | Using micro data from the Austrian Labor Force Survey from 1996 to 2010, this paper explores the effects on gender segregation of two opposing trends in gender differentials: decreasing gender differentials in participation rates and increasing gender differentials in the incidence of part-time jobs. To do so, we propose an index for the gender division of labor and look at the contributions of gender differences in participation, the incidence of part-time jobs, and in occupational choices to its evolution. Our main results show that the gender division of labor is very stable over the 15-year period. This is because the positive effects from the rising female labor force participation rates are counterbalanced by the negative effects from increasing gender differences in the incidence of part-time jobs. We also find that occupational segregation is the most important source of the gender division of labor and that its contribution remains stable throughout the entire period. These results are robust to alternative definitions of economic activity and labor market involvement and are also found after controlling for educational levels and fields. |
| Keywords: | Gender Division of Labor; Sources of Gender Segregation; Segregation Indexes, Mutual Information |
| JEL: | J16 J24 J62 |
| Date: | 2016–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:grz:wpaper:2016-06&r=dem |
| By: | Tine Hufkens; Gerlinde Verbist |
| Abstract: | An aspect that has only recently received attention in the study of policy measures aimed at supporting families with young children in their work-family life balance is its distributive impact. Are these measures used by poor and rich families alike, or is there a ‘Matthew effect’ at play, in the sense that poor families are underrepresented in using such measures? In order to perform such an evaluation one needs to have a measure of both cash and in-kind benefits related to policies that help families cope with the care of young children and job expectations. In-kind benefits are offered mainly in the form of subsidized early childhood education and care (ECEC), for which an appropriate cash equivalent has to be derived. As the value of in-kind benefits from publicly provided services is not included in the EU-SILC data, we derive them for this paper in line with earlier studies (e.g. Matsaganis and Verbist, 2009; Vaalavuo, 2011; Förster and Verbist, 2012; Van Lancker, 2014; Van Lancker and Ghysels, 2014). In comparison to these earlier studies, however, our analysis is much more fine-grained as we use the microsimulation model EUROMOD to include more precise estimates of parental fees and related tax-benefit policies; thus, we will have a better estimate of the net in-kind benefit households derive from ECEC services. We focus on policy measures going to children under compulsory schooling age for a selection of seven EU-countries. These improved estimates allow us to analyze the work-family polices from three perspectives: 1) how do the distributive characteristics of cash and in-kind benefits compare to one another in this domain?; 2) how do countries compare to one another in their policy perspective in terms of supporting outsourcing or home-based care for young children?; 3) what is the balance between private and public efforts for outsourced childcare across countries? Our results show that including net fees in the analysis attenuates the Matthew effect, in the sense that net fees are relatively more heavy for richer households than for the poor. There is, however, considerable cross-country variation. |
| Keywords: | Family policy, child care, in-kind benefits, income distribution, microsimulation |
| JEL: | H23 I38 J13 C53 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hdl:improv:1609&r=dem |
| By: | Gustafsson, Björn Anders (University of Gothenburg); Katz, Katarina (Karlstad University); Österberg, Torun (University of Gothenburg) |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we investigate to what degree young adults live in neighbourhoods that are similar, in terms of relative average household income, to the neighbourhoods in which they grew up. We use regression analysis on register data for all individuals who were born in 1974 and lived in metropolitan Sweden in both 1990 and 2006. During this period, the distribution of income in Sweden became far more unequal, unemployment rose dramatically, earlier housing policies were dismantled, the share of "visible minorities" increased dramatically and residential segregation increased very considerably. We find a correlation between average neighbourhood incomes at these two points in the sample's life cycle of 0.44, which is more than three times as high as the household income correlation. We find that half of the children of "visible minorities" grew up in the poorer quartile of neighbourhoods, and of these almost two-thirds remained in the poorest quartile of neighbourhoods as adults. Several measures indicate that intergenerational persistency in context is lower in metropolitan Sweden than was found in a similar study in the United States. However, it appears, that if visible minority individuals lived in a neighbourhood in the lowest part of the distribution in Sweden as a child, the probability that they will do so also as adults is as high as the corresponding probability for a African-American person in the US. |
| Keywords: | Sweden, residential segregation, immigrants, intergenerational persistence |
| JEL: | J15 J62 R23 |
| Date: | 2016–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp9837&r=dem |
| By: | Boll, Christina; Bublitz, Elisabeth |
| Abstract: | Regarding gender differences, theory suggests that in a partnership the individual with the lower working hours and earnings position should exhibit lower training participation rates. Since women are more likely to match this description, we investigate whether systematic group differences explain gender variation. Across all countries, male workers are not affected by their earnings position. For female workers in Germany, but not Italy or the Netherlands, working part-time instead of full-time corresponds with a decrease in course length by 5.5 hours. Also, regarding German parttime employed women, single earners train 5.6 hours more than secondary earners. The findings of our study hold at the extensive and the intensive margin, suggesting that Germany faces particular household-related obstacles regarding gender differences in job-related training. |
| Keywords: | further education and training,gender differences,country comparisons |
| JEL: | J16 J24 M53 |
| Date: | 2016 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:hwwirp:172&r=dem |
| By: | Michael J. Kottelenberg; Steven F. Lehrer |
| Abstract: | We extend earlier research evaluating the Quebec Family Policy by providing the first evidence on the distributional effects of universal child care on two specific developmental outcomes. Our analysis uncovers substantial policy relevant heterogeneity in the estimated effect of access to subsidized child care across two developmental score distributions for children from two-parent families. Whereas past research reported findings of negative effects on mothers and children from these families, igniting controversy, our estimates reveal a more nuanced image that formal child care can indeed boost developmental outcomes for children from some households: particularly disadvantaged single-parent households. In addition, we document significant heterogeneity that differs by child gender. We present suggestive evidence that the heterogeneity in policy effects that emerges across child gender and family type is consistent with differences in the home learning environments generated by parents behaviors that are previously present and are shaped by responses to the policy. |
| JEL: | C23 I28 J13 |
| Date: | 2016–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:22126&r=dem |
| By: | Andreas Thiemann |
| Abstract: | This paper examines how families adjust their private old-age savings in response to a change in individual pension wealth. The regression discontinuity approach exploits two expansions of the child care pension benefit, in 1992 and in 1999, as natural experiments. The empirical analysis is based on three waves of the Survey of Income and Expenditure (EVS): 1998, 2003 and 2008. All results indicate that families do not adjust their private old-age savings in response to the increase in their pension wealth. From a political point of view, this suggests that the increase in individual pension wealth does not crowd-out old-age private savings. Hence, child care pension benefits increase a mother's old-age income without causing negative savings effects. |
| Keywords: | Old-age savings, pension wealth, regression discontinuity design |
| JEL: | D14 E21 H55 |
| Date: | 2016 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:diw:diwwpp:dp1560&r=dem |