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Work Environment and OPT-out Rates at Motherhood across High-Education Career Paths

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  • Jane Leber Herr
  • Catherine D. Wolfram

Abstract

Observing a sample of Harvard alumnae in their late thirties, the authors study the relationship between workplace flexibility and the labor force participation of mothers. They first document a large variation in labor force participation rates across higher education fields. Mindful of the possibility of systematic patterns in the types of women who complete various graduate degrees, they use the rich information available for the sample, supplemented by the longitudinal nature of a subset of these data, to assess the extent to which these labor supply patterns may reflect variation in the difficulty of combining work with family. Although ruling out systematic sorting entirely is not possible, their evidence suggests that inflexible work environments “push†women out of the labor force at motherhood.

Suggested Citation

  • Jane Leber Herr & Catherine D. Wolfram, 2012. "Work Environment and OPT-out Rates at Motherhood across High-Education Career Paths," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 65(4), pages 928-950, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:ilrrev:v:65:y:2012:i:4:p:928-950
    DOI: 10.1177/001979391206500407
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    Cited by:

    1. Cortes, Patricia & Pan, Jessica, 2017. "Occupation and Gender," IZA Discussion Papers 10672, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Katherine Lim, 2019. "Do American mothers use self-employment as a flexible work alternative?," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 17(3), pages 805-842, September.
    3. Jiaping Zhang & Mingwang Cheng & Xinyu Wei & Xiaomei Gong, 2018. "Does Mobile Phone Penetration Affect Divorce Rate? Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-19, October.
    4. Cortes, Patricia & Pan, Jessica, 2016. "Prevalence of Long Hours and Skilled Women's Occupational Choices," IZA Discussion Papers 10225, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    5. Elizabeth L. Doran & Ann P. Bartel & Jane Waldfogel, 2018. "Gender in the Labor Market: The Role of Equal Opportunity and Family-Friendly Policies," NBER Working Papers 25378, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    6. Nayoung Rim & Kyung Park, 2017. "The Gendered Effects of Career Concerns on Fertility," Departmental Working Papers 59, United States Naval Academy Department of Economics.
    7. Alexandra Killewald & Xiaolin Zhou, 2015. "Mothers' Long-Term Employment Patterns," Upjohn Working Papers 15-247, W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research.

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