Grandparent-provided childcare and labor force participation of mothers with preschool children in Urban China

Fenglian Du,Xiao-Yuan Dong,Yinyu Zhang

doi:10.1007/s42379-018-00020-3

Abstract

This paper investigates the effects of grandparent-provided childcare and the access to daycare services on the labor force participation of mothers with children under 7 years old in urban China. Using two-stage residual inclusion method, the analysis finds that grandparent-provided childcare and the access to daycare services both have strong positive effects on maternal labor force participation (MLFP). Specifically, having grandparent-provided childcare increases MLFP by 38–43%, whereas having access to daycare services increases MLFP by 24–29%. The analysis also finds that having a healthy grandmother is a significant determinant in whether grandparent-provided childcare is utilized and that the demand for grandparent-provided childcare is higher in localities in which daycare services for children under 3 years old are more expensive. These results indicate that grandparents, particularly grandmothers, play an important role in sustaining MLFP, particularly as the supply of publicly funded daycare programs is declining.

Highlights

The massive entry of women with young children into the labor market in recent decades has drawn considerable scholarly attention to the interrelationships between maternal labor force participation (MLFP) and childcare choices
While access to grandparent-provided childcare extends the choices that mothers with young children can make regarding work and family (Gray 2005), caring for grandchildren limits the choices of grandparents, as they might participate in paid work themselves or spend time on leisure activities instead of caring for grandchildren (Posadas and Vidal-Fernández 2012)
Grandparents caring for grandchildren became a common feature of Chinese working families with young children

Summary

Introduction

The massive entry of women with young children into the labor market in recent decades has drawn considerable scholarly attention to the interrelationships between maternal labor force participation (MLFP) and childcare choices. Studies find that increasing access to affordable formal childcare services has played an important role in enabling mothers with young children to participate in the labor force.. Understanding the role of grandparents in providing childcare is essential to formulating effective policies addressing childcare needs and provision in light of rising maternal labor force participation (MLFP). While access to grandparent-provided childcare extends the choices that mothers with young children can make regarding work and family (Gray 2005), caring for grandchildren limits the choices of grandparents, as they might participate in paid work themselves or spend time on leisure activities instead of caring for grandchildren (Posadas and Vidal-Fernández 2012). Given the opportunity costs of caring for grandchildren, the availability of grandparents as caregivers should not be taken for granted.

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Results

Conclusion