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Parenthood and the Gender Gap in Commuting

Author

Listed:
  • Bütikofer, Aline

    (Dept. of Economics, Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration)

  • Karadakic, René

    (Dept. of Economics, Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration)

  • Willén, Alexander

    (Dept. of Economics, Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration)

Abstract

Childbirth increases the opportunity cost of commuting and makes it difficult for both parents to work far away from home. Using detailed Norwegian register data, we show that the commuting patterns of men and women diverge immediately after childbirth and that those differences persist for at least a decade. We show that this divergence in commuting exposes mothers to more concentrated labor markets with fewer job opportunities and establishments of lower quality. These findings help explain the child penalty documented in the prior literature and have important implications for the design of policies seeking to address the remaining gender wage gap.

Suggested Citation

  • Bütikofer, Aline & Karadakic, René & Willén, Alexander, 2023. "Parenthood and the Gender Gap in Commuting," Discussion Paper Series in Economics 11/2023, Norwegian School of Economics, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:hhs:nhheco:2023_011
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • J42 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Monopsony; Segmented Labor Markets
    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers

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