Working their Way Out of Poverty? Gendered Employment in Three Welfare States

Abstract

Governments increasingly view earning and saving as the main solutions to low-income and debt, but is it feasible to expect all parents to work their way out of poverty? This paper compares gendered patterns of income, and state support for earning and caring in three similar welfare states: Australia, New Zealand and Canada. Relying on recent OECD statistics and national studies, the paper examines employment patterns, poverty rates and state support, noting similarities but also wide variations by gender, family configuration and country. The paper argues that increases in female employment have modified household incomes but the changes have been insufficient to counteract gendered patterns of unpaid work and the challenges women face when parenting alone. Especially mothers find themselves working in low-paid jobs with little hope of job mobility and their economic circumstances often vary by marital status and levels of state support. In Canada and New Zealand, few lone mothers can work their way out of poverty but Australia offers longer support for mothering at home and enhanced in-work benefits that reduce poverty rates.