5 - Motherhood and participation
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 22 September 2009
Summary
Introduction
Over the last few decades women's labour market participation rates have increased remarkably in the European countries, while fertility has declined and is now below the replacement rate.
Since 1970, as well as these rising participation rates (especially among married women with children), women's college attendance and graduation rates have also greatly increased relative to males. These changes are reflected in their occupations and earnings relative to those of men. They now have more years of accumulated job experience, and their return to job experience has grown as well. Given the higher investment in human capital and higher returns, women started delaying marriage and childbearing to take formal education more seriously and dedicate more time to establishing work relationships. The combination of the postponement of marriage and more divorce increased the number of years spent unmarried and made then more valuable for women's financial independence provided by stronger attachment to the labour market (Goldin 2006). The decline in fertility associated with increased labour market participation is consistent with microeconomic theory which emphasises the opportunity cost associated with women’ s rising level of education, stronger labour market attachment and improved earnings prospects (Becker 1991; Cigno 1991; Ermisch 2003).
Since the mid 1980s, however, cross-national studies show that the negative correlation has turned positive.
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- Social Policies, Labour Markets and MotherhoodA Comparative Analysis of European Countries, pp. 155 - 181Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2008
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