Parental Care and Married Women's Labor Supply in Urban China

Abstract

The aging of the population and the dramatic increase in women's labor force participation have made eldercare and women's labor market outcomes a subject of considerable policy importance not just in industrialized countries but also in transition and developing countries. This study examines the impact of parental care on married women's labor supply in urban China using the China Health and Nutrition Survey for the period 1993–2006. The estimates show that Chinese women confront competing demands for care, not only among elderly parents but also between older parents and their own young children. Moreover, the estimates unveil striking differences in labor market outcomes between caring for parents and caring for parents-in-law: caring for parents does not affect the caregiver's employment status and work hours, whereas caring for parents-in-law has a statistically significant, sizable, negative effect on the caregiver's probability of employment and hours of paid work.