Gender equality trade-offs re-examined: evidence from Swiss cantons

Abstract

Decades of comparative research on gender inequality reported a counter-intuitive finding: state support for working mothers may paradoxically decrease gender equality within the labour market. Though this form of an inclusion-equality trade-off is specific to paid work, similar trade-offs may occur with respect to unpaid work. The present study discusses four such trade-offs and provides fresh empirical evidence from a within-country comparison of the 26 Swiss cantons. The analyses explore whether (on a macro level) welfare state support for maternal employment is negatively associated with vertical segregation, horizontal segregation, female workload or paternal involvement. Cantons with higher maternal employment show more vertical segregation and less paternal involvement, but these two inverse correlations are related to the cultural rather than the political context. The paper concludes with a discussion as to whether these cultural effects complement previous findings of politically induced trade-offs or indirectly support them.