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Child Sleep and Maternal Labour Market Outcomes

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  • Costa-Font, Joan

    (London School of Economics)

  • Flèche, Sarah

    (CNRS)

Abstract

We show that sleep deprivation exerts strong negative effects on mothers' labour market performance. To isolate exogenous variations in maternal sleep, we exploit unique variations in child sleep disruption using a UK panel dataset that follows mother-child pairs through time. We find that sleeping one hour less per night on average significantly decreases maternal labour force participation, the number of hours worked, and household income. We identify one mechanism driving the effects, namely the influence of maternal sleep on selection into full-time versus part-time work. Increased schedule flexibility for mothers with sufficient tenure mitigates the negative effects of sleep deprivation.

Suggested Citation

  • Costa-Font, Joan & Flèche, Sarah, 2018. "Child Sleep and Maternal Labour Market Outcomes," IZA Discussion Papers 11755, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp11755
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    Citations

    Blog mentions

    As found by EconAcademics.org, the blog aggregator for Economics research:
    1. Chris Sampson’s journal round-up for 6th January 2020
      by Chris Sampson in The Academic Health Economists' Blog on 2020-01-06 12:00:00

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    Cited by:

    1. Costa-Font, Joan & Fleche, Sarah & Pagan, Ricardo, 2024. "The labour market returns to sleep," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    2. Joan Costa‐Font & Sarah Fleche & Ricardo Pagan, 2024. "The welfare effects of time reallocation: evidence from Daylight Saving Time," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 91(362), pages 547-568, April.
    3. Berniell, Inés & Bietenbeck, Jan, 2020. "The effect of working hours on health," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 39(C).
    4. Jeremy Clark & David L Dickinson, 2017. "The Impact of Sleep Restriction on Contributions and Punishment: First Evidence," Working Papers in Economics 17/02, University of Canterbury, Department of Economics and Finance.
    5. Flynn, James & Meyers-Richter, Noah & Nencka, Peter, 2025. "Soccer’s Record on the Road: The Effect of Late-Night Sporting Events on Fatal Car Crashes," IZA Discussion Papers 18050, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    6. Huebener, Mathias & Odermatt, Reto, 2025. "The Wished-For Children: Do Mothers Carry the Burden While Fathers Reap the Joy?," IZA Discussion Papers 18039, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    7. Nguyen, Ha Trong & Zubrick, Stephen R. & Mitrou, Francis, 2024. "The effects of sleep duration on child health and development," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 221(C), pages 35-51.
    8. Jeremy Clark & David L Dickinson, 2020. "The effect of sleep on public good contributions and punishment: Experimental evidence," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(10), pages 1-26, October.
    9. Bertoni, Marco & Meli, Francesca & Rocco, Lorenzo, 2025. "Rest Assured. The Effects of Sleep on Labor Productivity," IZA Discussion Papers 17618, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    10. Dou, Jialu & Gihleb, Rania & Giuntella, Osea & Lonsky, Jakub, 2025. "Breaking the Early Bell: Lessons from the First Statewide Mandate on School Start Times," IZA Discussion Papers 17930, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    11. Joan Costa-Font, 2022. "Incentivizing sleep?," IZA World of Labor, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), pages 502-502, November.
    12. Inés Berniell & Jan Bietenbeck, 2019. "The E↵ect of Working Hours on Health," Asociación Argentina de Economía Política: Working Papers 4210, Asociación Argentina de Economía Política.

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    JEL classification:

    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
    • J28 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Safety; Job Satisfaction; Related Public Policy

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