Job Search and Mobility Over the Life Cycle: C hildbirth and Women’s Careers
Abstract:
We document using Dutch administrative and survey data that women’s job mobility drops around childbirth. Women make fewer job-to-job transitions starting one year before birth until many year s after. They are also less likely to engage in on-the-job search and work in jobs with low amenities related to irregular hours. We develop a life-cy cle labor supply, job search and job switching model for women in which mot hers and pregnant women face higher search and switching costs. Jobs are ch aracterized as bundles of wages and amenities, the latter decrease work dis utility. We use the model to quantify a novel channel through which the chi ld penalty operates: because (expecting) mothers perform less job search an d switching, they remain in jobs with low wages and amenities, therefore wo rking and earning less. Search and switching costs related to childbirth re duce lifetime earnings by 7.7%, accounting for 21% of the child penalty. We validate our model with a recent reform which eliminated tenure requiremen ts for parental leave. Mothers increased job switching before birth but dec reased employment in the year of birth.
DTSTAMP:20260714T175857Z DTSTART:20260716T130000Z DTEND:20260716T140000Z SEQUENCE:0 TRANSP:OPAQUE END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR