Married Women S Work and Use of Childcare in Southern Europe

MARRIED WOMEN’S WORK AND USE OF CHILDCARE IN SOUTHERN EUROPE

Childcare andother unpaid work remain unequally shared among partners in the Mediterranean countries of Europe, even when mothersare in full-time work. Although familystructures and employment patterns have changed in last 20 years (with anincrease not only in the labour force participation of married womenbut also in husbands’ housework), the proportion of women thatwork at home remains very high.

Research by Catia Nicodemo and Robert Waldmann – presented to the Royal Economic Society's 2009 annual conference at the University of Surrey – finds that of the married women who are in work, four in five use unpaid childcare, but only a half use paid childcare.

Mothers clearly take childcare arrangements into account when making decisions about work as well as the wage rate. Policies that increase the effective wage rate, such as benefitsfor poor families or reduced taxation on married women’s earnings are likelyto have a significant effect on their employment.

The relationship between childcare and the participation of mothers inthe paid workforce seems obvious: if childcare was more affordable, moremothers would work, but in Europe generally and in particular in the Mediterraneancountries (Italy, Spain, France, Portugal and Greece). The reality is a littlebit different from this obvious fact, due to family tradition and it is primarilyresponsible for unpaid work by married women.

This study uses a variety of European databases (1994-2006) to examine the connection between married women’slabour force participation, childcare arrangements and the time that husbands and wives spend taking care of children.

So what does this tell us about Mediterranean countries? First, it confirms that childcare arrangements have a positive effect on the participationof women in paid employment. Having non-parental childcarearrangements(and in particular grandparents who help take care of children)is correlated with having more time to participate in the labour market. Ingeneral, 80% of married women in working status use unpaid childcare. Thispercentage falls to 50% in the case of paid childcare.

Furthermore, in Italy, Spain and Greece, children spend fewer hoursin paid childcarecompared with the other Southern European countries. But at the same time a surprisingly high percentage of women in these countries stay at home and use non-parental childcare arrangements for childrenless than three years old.

Second, mothers take childcare arrangements into account when making decisions about work. Women’s labour supply and childcare arrangements are influenced by the wage rate.

The results indicate thathourly wages have a strong effect on the decision to work as well as to useboth paid and unpaid childcare. Policies that increase the effective wage rate, such as benefitsfor poor families or reduced taxation on married women’s earnings are likelyto have a significant effect on the employment status.

Finally, the results show that while Mediterranean countries have advanced in the incorporation of women into the labour market, most womenstill have to assume total responsibility for housework and the care of children.

In the Southern countries of Europe, women are primarily responsible forunpaid work at home and the family tradition is central. Childcare andother unpaid work are unequally shared among partners, even when mothersare employed on a full-time basis in the labour market.

Although the familystructure and employment patterns have changed in last 20 years, with anincrease not only of the labour force participation rate by married women,but also with an increase of housework by husbands, the rate of women thatwork at home is very high in the Mediterranean countries.

These conclusions are different and opposite for these countries:on one hand, women are discouraged to use childcare maybe due to a strongfamily tradition, where the woman is the pillar in the house, rather than dueto the cost of childcare or the presence of it. On the other hand, womendo not enter the labour market, not because children are an obstructionbut due to other reasons such as personal preferences and attitudes toparenting. Sometimes these factors prevent them from being in paid work.

ENDS

‘Childcare and Participation in the Labour Marketfor Married Women in Mediterranean Countries’ by Catia Nicodemo and Robert Waldmann

Catia Nicodemo

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