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Selection into maternity leave length and long-run maternal health in Germany

Author

Listed:
  • Lara Bister

    (Population Research Centre - University of Groningen [Groningen])

  • Peter Eibich

    (Legos - Laboratoire d'Economie et de Gestion des Organisations de Santé - Université Paris Dauphine-PSL - PSL - Université Paris Sciences et Lettres, LEDa - Laboratoire d'Economie de Dauphine - IRD - Institut de Recherche pour le Développement - Université Paris Dauphine-PSL - PSL - Université Paris Sciences et Lettres - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)

  • Roberta Rutigliano
  • Mine Kühn
  • Karen van Hedel

Abstract

Existing literature shows the importance of maternity leave as a strategy for women to balance work and family responsibilities. However, only a few studies focused on the long-run impact of maternity leave length on maternal health. Therefore, how exactly they are related remains unclear. We examine women's selection into different lengths of maternity leave as a potential explanation for the inconclusive findings in the literature on the association between maternity leave and maternal health. This study aims to unravel the association between maternity leave length and mothers' long-term health in Germany. Drawing on detailed data from the German Statutory Pension Fund (DRV), we estimated the association between maternity leave length and sick leave from 3 years following their child's birth for 4,243 women living in Germany in 2015 by applying discrete-time logistic regression. Our results show a negative relationship between maternity-leave length and long-term maternal health, likely driven by negative health selection. Long maternity leaves of more than 24 months were associated with worse maternal health in the long run, while a positive association emerged for vulnerable women with pre-existing health problems.

Suggested Citation

  • Lara Bister & Peter Eibich & Roberta Rutigliano & Mine Kühn & Karen van Hedel, 2023. "Selection into maternity leave length and long-run maternal health in Germany," Post-Print hal-04442896, HAL.
    • Handle: RePEc:hal:journl:hal-04442896
    DOI: 10.1017/S0047279423000429
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://hal.science/hal-04442896
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Rainald Borck, 2014. "Adieu Rabenmutter—culture, fertility, female labour supply, the gender wage gap and childcare," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 27(3), pages 739-765, July.
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    Keywords

    maternital health; maternity leave; child health; Germany;
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