| Abstract: |
Having children can result in large earnings penalties for mothers. Using
extensive administrative data from the Netherlands, we assess the magnitude
and drivers of the effects of first childbirth on parents' earnings
trajectories in the Netherlands. We show that mothers' earnings are 46% lower
compared to their pre-birth earnings trajectory, whereas fathers' earnings are
unaffected by child birth. We examine the role of two potential determinants
of the unequal distribution of parents' labour market costs by gender:
childcare policies and gender norms. We find that while child care
availability is correlated with lower child penalty, the immediate short-term
causal effect of increasing child care availability on the earnings penalty of
becoming a mother is small. By taking advantage of variation in gender norms
in different population groups, we show that gender norms are strongly
correlated with child penalty for mothers. Having children can result in large
earnings penalties for mothers. Using extensive administrative data from the
Netherlands, we assess the magnitude and drivers of the effects of first
childbirth on parents' earnings trajectories in the Netherlands. We show that
mothers' earnings are 46% lower compared to their pre-birth earnings
trajectory, whereas fathers' earnings are unaffected by child birth. We
examine the role of two potential determinants of the unequal distribution of
parents' labour market costs by gender: childcare policies and gender norms.
We find that while child care availability is correlated with lower child
penalty, the immediate short-term causal effect of increasing child care
availability on the earnings penalty of becoming a mother is small. By taking
advantage of variation in gender norms in different population groups, we show
that gender norms are strongly correlated with child penalty for mothers. |