Female Labor Market Outcomes Research Articles

Unintended consequences of maternity leave entitlements on female labor market outcomes in China

This study provides the first empirical evidence of the impact of maternity leave entitlements on labor market outcomes for women of childbearing age in urban China. We exploit a reform during which approximately two-thirds of the provinces in China extended their leave entitlements from 2014 to 2016 and employ a triple-difference strategy to deal with the identification. The results suggest unintended effects, as leave entitlement extensions led to a reduction in the likelihood of working, formal employment, and wage for women of childbearing age relative to their counterparts. We further establish that greater reliance on employer liability may be the main mechanism behind the unintended effects, highlighting the importance of payment schemes. This study provides novel evidence and mechanisms for the labor market effect of maternity leave in women of childbearing age and provides new insights for maternity leave related policy designs.

Shifting the Balance: Examining the Impact of Local Labor Market Opportunities on Female Household Bargaining Power in India

There has been considerable interest in studying the effect of female labor market outcomes on intrahousehold bargaining. This paper examines the effects of local labor market opportunities in India on a variety of female bargaining characteristics, including domestic violence and intrahousehold discussion of important issues. Specifically, I utilize district-level data on employment in various occupations to calculate an employment shift-share index that proxies gender-specific labor demand. I find that improvements in labor market conditions for women lead to a decrease in perceptions of domestic violence, whereas improvements in predicted demand for male employment have little or negative effects on women’s household bargaining power. When disaggregated by indicators of initial bargaining power, women that have lower levels of initial bargaining power either see no effect on bargaining or experience a backlash effect.

Temporary work contracts and female labor market outcomes

How does initial placement in a temporary work contract affect workers’ subsequent labor market outcomes? We study a unique set of natural experiments: In the mid-1990s, the Japanese airline industry implemented a new hiring policy using temporary employment contracts. The policy was later reversed in the mid-2010s. Examining the universe of employment records from one of Japan’s major airlines as well as government surveys to compare outcomes for cohorts of flight attendants hired just before to those hired just after these changes in industry policy, we find that workers starting on temporary contracts were less likely to remain with the firm over time and are less likely to have children within 10 years after starting the job. These findings do not appear to be the result of selection on observables.

Heterogeneous impact of internet availability on female labor market outcomes in an emerging economy: Evidence from Indonesia

Greater female labor market participation benefits not only women's empowerment and the well-being of their families, but also the economy as a whole. Yet the labor force participation of women in developing countries is relatively stagnant, even with higher levels of economic development and better educational attainment. Women are also more likely to work in the informal sector and unskilled jobs. The arrival of the internet and the subsequent creation of internet-based jobs may positively affect women's labor market outcomes. In this paper, we examine the effect of internet availability on five dimensions of women's labor market outcomes in Indonesia, focusing on the heterogeneity in the impact of internet availability on female labor market outcomes. We construct a balanced pseudo panel covering all districts in the country for 2008 – 2018. We find that internet availability has a small positive effect on the labor force participation and full-time employment of younger or low-educated women. We find a small negative effect on the likelihood of holding skilled jobs for these groups of women. We also find a small negative effect on job formality. These effects are concentrated among low-educated women. The findings are mainly explained by the kind of internet-based jobs that were created in the country. On balance, we do not find evidence that the internet significantly improves women's labor market outcomes.

Chinese Import Competition and Gendered Labor Market Outcomes: Evidence from Ethiopian Firm-Level Data

Abstract In this paper, we analyse the relationship between Chinese import competition and gendered labor market outcomes within the context of a developing country. To do this, we merge a rich manufacturing firm-level panel data set from Ethiopia with trade data covering the years 1997–2010. Thus, we map out the effect of trade shocks from import surges on labor force participation and compensation, decomposed by gender. Results from the study show that rising import competition from China had a heterogeneous effect on female and male labor market outcomes. Import competition from China is associated with a negative and statistically significant effect on female employment, but not male employment. Looking at workers’ occupation, we find that for production workers import competition is adversely related with female employment outcomes while there is no statistically significant association with employment of administrative workers. For wage inequality, male wages in general are negatively associated with import competition, while we found no effect on female wages.

The effect of the universal two-child policy on female labour market outcomes in China

AbstractTo alleviate the imbalance in demographics, the Chinese government initiated the universal two-child policy nationwide in 2016, which has comprehensively impacted society, especially females. Our study investigates whether this policy has negatively affected workforce employment and income among women in urban areas. Based on the DID (difference-in-differences) method and the Heckman Two-Step Estimation, reliable empirical evidence shows that the universal two-child policy has significantly reduced women’s employment by 4.06% and decreased their labour income by 10.43%. Surprisingly, this policy has decreased the employment among women under 25 years old by 23.99% and has reduced the income of higher educated females by 29.59%. Furthermore, we find that the influence of the universal two-child policy on female employment has gradually increased from 2016 to 2018, and its impact on income has presented an evident time lag.

Child Marriage Bans and Female Schooling and Labor Market Outcomes: Evidence from Natural Experiments in 17 Low- and Middle-Income Countries

I measure the effect of child marriage bans on female educational attainment and employment using a difference-in-differences approach employing subnational spatial and cohort variation in a sample of over 250,000 female respondents from 17 low- and middle-income countries banning child marriage between 1995 and 2012. My results using the full study sample suggest that raising the minimum legal age of marriage to 18 increased age at marriage, age at first birth, and the likelihood of employment. In urban areas, the bans also reduced child marriage and increased educational attainment. Effects of the bans typically were smaller in rural areas, in countries with a lower pre-ban minimum legal age at marriage, for cohorts with lower temporal exposure to the ban, and for reducing marriage at ages just below 18, consistent with imperfect enforcement. (JEL I21, J12, J13, J16, J18, K38, O15)

Reproductive Burden and Its Impact on Female Labor Market Outcomes in India: Evidence from Longitudinal Analyses

We use nationally representative data from two waves of the Indian Human Development Survey to examine the role of inter-temporal changes in fertility behavior in influencing female labor market outcomes. Our multivariate regression estimates show that an increase in the number of children reduces labor force participation and earnings. We further investigated the impact of fertility changes on transitions from the labor market. The results show that women who had more than three children in both rounds of the survey had a 3.5% points higher probability of exiting from the labor market than their counterparts with two or fewer children net of other socio-demographic factors. Disaggregated analyses by caste, economic, educational status, and region show that the probability of dropping out of the labor market due to fertility changes varies by region and is greater for non-poor and primary to secondary schooling women and those from socially disadvantaged castes than poor, non-educated, and socially advantageous women.

Childcare and Mothers’ Labor Market Outcomes in Lower- and Middle-Income Countries

Abstract Improving women's labor force participation and the quality of their employment can boost economic growth and support poverty and inequality reduction; thus, it is highly pertinent for the development agenda. However, existing systematic reviews on female labor market outcomes and childcare, which can arguably improve these outcomes, are focused on developed countries. We review 22 studies which plausibly identify the causal impact of institutional childcare on maternal labor market outcomes in lower-and-middle income countries. All but one study finds positive impacts on the extensive or intensive margin of maternal labor market outcomes, which aligns with findings from developed countries. We further analyze aspects of childcare design, including hours, ages of children, coordination with other childcare services that may increase the impacts on maternal labor market outcomes. We conclude with a discussion of directions for future research.

Is there a long-run relationship between the unemployment insurance and the labor force participation rate in the USA? A nonlinear analysis

PurposeThis paper explores the evidence of a long-run co-movement between aggregate unemployment insurance spending and the labor force participation rate in the USA. The unemployment insurance (UI) program tends to expand during an economic downturn and contract during an expansion. UI may incentivize unemployment and may also facilitate better matching in the labor market. Statistical evidence of the presence of a co-movement will thus shed new light on their dynamics.Design/methodology/approachThis research applies time-series econometric approach using monthly data from 1959:1 to 2020:3 to test threshold cointegration and estimate a threshold vector error-correction (TVEC) model. The estimates from the TVEC model investigating the nature of short-run dynamics.FindingsThe Enders and Siklos (2001) test find evidence of threshold cointegration between the two indicating the presence of long-run co-movement. The estimates from the TVEC model investigating the nature of short-run dynamics find evidence that the growth in aggregate UI spending and the growth in labor force participation rate adjust simultaneously to maintain the long-run co-movement above the threshold in the short run. The author also observes the same short-run dynamics for the growth in aggregate UI spending and the growth in the labor force participation rate for females.Research limitations/implicationsThis model is bi-variate by construction and does not address causality.Practical implicationsThe author argues that the UI program positively impacts the female labor market outcomes, for example, better matching. This finding may explain the upward trend in the labor force participation rate for females in the USA.Social implicationsThe research findings may justify the transfer programs for minority and immigrants.Originality/valueThis is first research that analyzes the UI programs impact on the labor force participation using a macroeconometric approach. To the best of the author's knowledge, this is the first study in this genre.

The role of religion in female labor supply: evidence from two Muslim denominations

AbstractThis paper investigates the association between religion and female labor market outcomes using new micro-level data on two distinct Muslim denominations in Turkey: Sunni and Alevi Muslims. We find a positive and significant association between being an Alevi Muslim and female labor force participation and employment, whereas there are no significant differences in male labor market outcomes between the two denominations. We provide evidence that Alevi Muslims have more gender-equal views regarding the role of women in the labor market and consider themselves as more modern. Both Sunnis and Alevis consider themselves as believers in religion (Islam). However, Sunnis are more likely to abide by the rules of religion. We argue that differences in views on gender roles and self-identity regarding modernity between the two denominations drive the results on female labor market outcomes.

The effects of a trade shock on gender-specific labor market outcomes in Brazil

As countries around the world increasingly engage in international trade, labor markets respond, creating both winners and losers. In this paper, I analyze the impact of a trade shock on gender-specific local labor market outcomes in Brazil. I use an instrumental variable approach and population census data for Brazil to estimate the effect of both increased imports from China and increased exports to China on male and female local labor market outcomes from 2000 to 2010. Regions more exposed to imports from China experience slower wage growth in the traded and formal sectors, but the declines are significantly larger for men, particularly in sectors with low shares of female employment. Exports have a positive association with wage growth, but no relationship with employment growth. Import-induced wage declines are coupled with significant employment growth in the formal sector. The gains for women are nearly double those for men, increasing the share of female employment in the formal sector. Regions more exposed to Chinese imports also experience an increase in the female employment to population ratio and a decrease in male and female unemployment rates. Thus, trade with China induces new workers into the labor market, reduces unemployment, and reallocates labor to the formal sector. These employment gains are strongest for women, signaling reduced employment barriers for females. Further, as employment reallocates to the formal sector, occupation segregation declines, highlighting an additional avenue through which trade can have gendered labor market effects.

Losing in a boom: Long-term consequences of a local economic shock for female labour market outcomes

This article examines the long-term labour market consequences of a positive and large-scale economic shock, the discovery of oil and gas in Norway. Using longitudinal data on the entire Norwegian population, we find that the shock increases male income by around 7%, while reducing female income by up to 14%. Although married women experience the largest income losses, they also have higher household income, revealing the importance of labour supply adjustments within households. While these income shifts persist for two decades, the subsequent generation of female workers are able to close the income gap with their peers in areas less affected by the oil boom.

If not now, when? The timing of childbirth and labor market outcomes

SummaryWe study the effect of childbirth and birth timing on female labor market outcomes in Italy. The impact is traced up to 21 years since school completion by estimating a factor analytic model with dynamic selection into treatments. We find that childbirth, especially the first delivery, negatively affects female earnings and participation. Women having their first child soon after school exit catch up with childless women after 12–15 years. The negative consequences are smaller if the first child is delayed up to 7–9 years after school completion or if a second childbirth occurs within 6 years since school exit.

Disability in Uganda: a medical intervention to measure gendered impacts on functional independence and labour-market outcomes

ABSTRACT Using data from an orthotic intervention in Kampala, Uganda, this paper estimates the health and economic impacts of providing orthotic equipment to adults with lower limb disabilities. We examine changes to: (i) functional mobility and (ii) labour market outcomes, including type of employment and monthly earnings. One year after the intervention, the effects are noticeably gendered; men exhibit an improvement in their level of functional mobility, while women face little change or a reduction in their levels. In terms of labour market outcomes, for men the intervention leads to an increase in monthly earnings, which is partly due to a switch from self- to wage employment. Effects on female labour market outcomes generate more nuanced results. Earnings increase for women, although the overall effect is much smaller. Taking into account the intensity of equipment use, our Wald estimates reveal larger marginal effects on both mobility and earnings.

Female long-term labour market outcomes: the role of early-life abilities and education

ABSTRACT We study how early-life cognitive skills, non-cognitive abilities, and family characteristics influence educational choices and affect later employment outcomes and wages. The analysis was carried out on a cohort of UK females observed at different life stages by adopting the British National Child Development Study database. Our findings provide evidence of how early-life abilities and family characteristics affect both the educational attainment and later labour market outcomes of female workers. However, we found that educational levels interact with early-life abilities, productive characteristics in general, and other characteristics, giving rise to different employment outcomes and income prospects conditioned on educational attainment. Occupational outcomes and wages of low-educated women are more sensitive to factors that are not strictly linked to productivity.

Children and female labor market outcomes in Vietnam

This paper examines the effect of fertility on the participation of women in the labor market and other labor market outcomes in Vietnam, using Vietnam Labor Force Survey data. To address the endogeneity issue in fertility, we use an instrumental variable estimation method based on parental preference for the mixed-sex composition of the first two children. Our findings indicate that number of children has a negative impact on maternal participation in the labor market and on working hours but has no effect on earnings. We find that the effect on participation in the market is important for younger women aged 21–35 years but insignificant for older women aged 36–50 years. The older group responds by reducing their working hours rather than leaving the labor force. Our results support the position that the rise in female participation in the labor force in Vietnam can be partially attributed to the overall decline in fertility during the last three decades and helps validate the Vietnamese government's planning policy.

The intergenerational transmission of gender norms—why and how adolescent males with working mothers matter for female labour market outcomes

AbstractSocial norms are put forward as a prominent explanation for the changing labour supply decisions of women. This paper studies the intergenerational transmission of these norms, examining how they affect subsequent female labour supply decisions, taking into account not only the early socialization of women but also that of their partner. Using large representative panel data sets from West Germany, results suggest that women with partners who grew up with a working mother are more likely to participate in the labour force, work longer hours and earn higher labour income. The main contribution of our study is that we assess a variety of potential mechanisms for this intergenerational link. We find no evidence that this finding reflects assortative mating; rather, analysis suggests that the partner’s preferences are based on their experiences with the employment of their mothers and play a decisive role for the labour supply decision of partnered women. Moreover, we identify various effect heterogeneities, finding stronger associations for women with potentially less bargaining power. Our results suggest that policy measures supporting the labour force participation of today’s mothers will increase the female labour force participation of the next generation.

Reproductive burden and its impact on female labor market outcomes in India: Evidence from longitudinal analyses

We use nationally representative data from two waves of the Indian Human Development Survey to provide causal evidence on the role of inter-temporal changes in fertility behaviour in influencing female labor market outcomes. Our multivariate regression estimates show that an increase in the number of children reduces labor force participation and earnings. We further investigated the impact of fertility changes on transitions from the labor market. The results show that women who had more than three children in both rounds of the survey had a 3.5 percentage points higher probability of exiting from the labor market. Disaggregated analyses by caste, economic status and region show regional heterogeneity, and the probability of dropping-out of the labor market due to fertility changes is greater for non-poor women and those from socially disadvantaged castes.

Effects of the timing of childbirth on female labor supply: an analysis using the sequential matching approach

ABSTRACT This study estimates the effects of childbirth on female labour supply using Japanese data. The original contributions of our study are twofold. First, we include the preference for having children as a time-varying confounding variable in the effects of childbirth on female labour supply. Second, we apply a dynamic version of the sequential matching approach to analyse the causal effects of childbirth on female labour market outcomes. The results show that childbirth decreases current employment outcomes (participation as regular and non-regular workers) and that this decrease is more pronounced among regular workers than non-regular workers. At the time of childbirth, while the negative effects of childbirth on choosing regular work increase when childbirth age is delayed, the negative effects on choosing non-regular work are slightly decreased by delaying the age of childbirth. Regarding future employment outcomes, childbirth does not affect the probability of choosing non-regular work in the next period, regardless of childbirth age. In contrast, delayed childbirth decreases the probability of choosing regular work in the next period significantly.