IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/zbw/espost/330395.html

The gendered impact of parenthood on job-related training participation in Germany and the United Kingdom

Author

Listed:
  • Lim, Misun
  • dos Santos, Sascha

Abstract

Recent studies highlight the role of parenthood in perpetuating persistent gender inequality in the labour market. We examine whether the transition to parenthood influences job-related training participation. This study uses fixed-effects models and longitudinal data from the German National Educational Panel Study (starting cohort 6, 2010–2021) and Understanding Society: The UK Household Longitudinal Study (2010–2019). Our findings show that women’s job-related training participation decreases following parenthood in both countries, but that this decline is steeper in Germany and persists beyond the early stage of parenthood. Furthermore, our mediation analysis shows that parental leave is one of the main drivers of the motherhood penalty in job-related training in both countries. In contrast, when men have a first child, it has a small negative effect on training participation levels in Germany and no effect in the United Kingdom. This study sheds light on the gendered impact of the transition to parenthood on job-related training participation and how the country context influences these relationships.

Suggested Citation

  • Lim, Misun & dos Santos, Sascha, 2025. "The gendered impact of parenthood on job-related training participation in Germany and the United Kingdom," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 41(2), pages 278-298.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:espost:330395
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/330395/1/Full-text-article-Lim-dos-Santos-The-gendered-impact.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Alexander Bick & Nicola Fuchs-Schündeln, 2017. "Quantifying the Disincentive Effects of Joint Taxation on Married Women's Labor Supply," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 107(5), pages 100-104, May.
    2. Lohmann, Henning & Zagel, Hannah, 2016. "Family policy in comparative perspective: the concepts and measurement of familization and defamilization," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 26(1), pages 48-65.
    3. Gary S. Becker, 1981. "A Treatise on the Family," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number beck81-1, January-J.
    4. Schober, Pia & Scott, Jacqueline, 2012. "Maternal Employment and Gender Role Attitudes: Dissonance Among British Men and Women in the Transition to Parenthood," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 26(3), pages 514-530.
    5. Henrik Kleven & Camille Landais & Johanna Posch & Andreas Steinhauer & Josef Zweimüller, 2019. "Child Penalties across Countries: Evidence and Explanations," AEA Papers and Proceedings, American Economic Association, vol. 109, pages 122-126, May.
    6. Patrick Puhani & Katja Sonderhof, 2011. "The effects of parental leave extension on training for young women," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 24(2), pages 731-760, April.
    7. Gundula Zoch, 2023. "Participation in Job-Related Training: Is There a Parenthood Training Penalty?," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 37(1), pages 274-292, February.
    8. Hipp, Lena, 2020. "Do hiring practices penalize women and benefit men for having children? Experimental evidence from Germany," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 36(2), pages 250-264.
    9. Laura Bernardi & Andreas Klärner & Holger Lippe, 2008. "Job Insecurity and the Timing of Parenthood: A Comparison between Eastern and Western Germany," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 24(3), pages 287-313, September.
    10. Phelps, Edmund S, 1972. "The Statistical Theory of Racism and Sexism," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 62(4), pages 659-661, September.
    11. Sinn Won Han, 2023. "When Kids Are a Burden: Understanding the Normative Sources of Negative Perceptions of Parenthood," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 49(3), pages 499-529, September.
    12. Jacob Mincer & Haim Ofek, 1982. "Interrupted Work Careers: Depreciation and Restoration of Human Capital," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 17(1), pages 3-24.
    13. Walter Korpi, 2000. "Faces of Inequality: Gender, Class and Patterns of Inequalities in Different Types of Welfare States," LIS Working papers 224, LIS Cross-National Data Center in Luxembourg.
    14. Shelly Lundberg & Robert A. Pollak, 1996. "Bargaining and Distribution in Marriage," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 10(4), pages 139-158, Fall.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Gundula Zoch, 2023. "Participation in Job-Related Training: Is There a Parenthood Training Penalty?," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 37(1), pages 274-292, February.
    2. Pia S. Schober, 2014. "Daddy Leave: Does It Change the Gender Division of Domestic Work?," DIW Roundup: Politik im Fokus 46, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    3. Nkechi S. Owoo & Monica P. Lambon-Quayefio, 2022. "Does Job Security Affect Fertility and Fertility Intentions in Ghana? Examining the Evidence," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 43(1), pages 86-99, March.
    4. Cavapozzi, Danilo & Francesconi, Marco & Nicoletti, Cheti, 2021. "The impact of gender role norms on mothers’ labor supply," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 186(C), pages 113-134.
    5. Pia S. Schober & Gundula Zoch, 2015. "Change in the Gender Division of Domestic Work after Mummy or Daddy Took Leave: An Examination of Alternative Explanations," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 803, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    6. Sunnee Billingsley & Gerda Neyer & Katharina Wesolowski, 2022. "Social Investment Policies and Childbearing Across 20 Countries: Longitudinal and Micro-Level Analyses," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 38(5), pages 951-974, December.
    7. Morgenroth, Nicolas & Schels, Brigitte & Teichler, Nils, 2022. "Are Men or Women More Unsettled by Fixed-Term Contracts? Gender Differences in Affective Job Insecurity and the Role of Household Context and Labour Market Positions," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 38(4), pages 560-574.
    8. Francesconi, Marco & Nicoletti, Cheti & Cavapozzi, Danilo, 2021. "The Impact of Gender Role Norms on Mothers’ Labor Supply," CEPR Discussion Papers 15957, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    9. Eva Österbacka & Tapio Räsänen, 2025. "The Importance of Self-Selection and Childcare Leave Length for Child Penalty," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 41(1), pages 1-31, December.
    10. Michael E. Martell & Peyton Nash, 2020. "For Love and Money? Earnings and Marriage Among Same-Sex Couples," Journal of Labor Research, Springer, vol. 41(3), pages 260-294, September.
    11. Sami Napari, 2008. "The Early‐career Gender Wage Gap among University Graduates in the Finnish Private Sector," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 22(4), pages 697-733, December.
    12. Kasey Buckles & Melanie Guldi & Joseph Price, 2011. "Changing the Price of Marriage: Evidence from Blood Test Requirements," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 46(3), pages 539-567.
    13. Filip Chybalski & Edyta Marcinkiewicz, 2024. "Grandparents “on board”: How they translate into the households’ fertility decisions," DECISION: Official Journal of the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, Springer;Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, vol. 51(2), pages 233-250, June.
    14. LaFave, Daniel & Thomas, Duncan, 2017. "Extended families and child well-being," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 126(C), pages 52-65.
    15. Julia Schmieder & Doris Weichselbaumer & Clara Welteke & Katharina Wrohlich, 2024. "Parental Leave and Discrimination in the Labor Market," Berlin School of Economics Discussion Papers 0054, Berlin School of Economics.
    16. Heggeness, Misty L., 2020. "Improving child welfare in middle income countries: The unintended consequence of a pro-homemaker divorce law and wait time to divorce," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 143(C).
    17. Joan Garcia-Roman, 2025. "Gender differences in routine housework among one-person households: A cross-national analysis," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 52(12), pages 369-382.
    18. Andersen, Signe Hald & Özcan, Berkay, 2021. "The effects of unemployment on fertility," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 109007, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    19. Thierry Laurent & Ferhat Mihoubi, 2012. "Sexual Orientation and Wage Discrimination in France: The Hidden Side of the Rainbow," Journal of Labor Research, Springer, vol. 33(4), pages 487-527, December.
    20. Man Si, 2015. "Intrafamily bargaining and love," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 13(4), pages 771-789, December.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:zbw:espost:330395. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/zbwkide.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.