Balancing Childbearing and Work under Different Labor Market Arrangements: An Analysis of European Union Countries

Alicia Adsera, University of Chicago and University of Illinois at Chicago

The ability of markets to accommodate women's labor force transitions in connection to childbirth and to ease the trade-offs between work and childcare varies significantly within Europe. I use the 1994-2000 waves of the European Community Household panel to estimate a probit model of the transitions in/out of the labor force, into part time as well as into unemployment of women after births of different order across 15 countries. Models are estimated at 6, 12, 24 and 36 months after birth. At the individual level, I control for women's and spouse's personal (education) and employment characteristics (type/length of contract, sector) as well as household information (income, family allowances). At a second level, institutional and economic differences across countries and regions (maternity benefits, size of government sector, typology of contracts, unemployment) are used. Results should shed light on what factors contribute to balance childbearing with labor market activity.