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The causal effect of the number of children on gender‐specific labour supply elasticities to the firm

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  • Céline Detilleux
  • Nick Deschacht

Abstract

We estimate the effect of the number of children on the female and the male wage elasticities of labour supply to the firm using instrumental variables estimation in data from the US Current Population Survey (2000–19). Parents' number of children is instrumented with the sex mix of their first two children. We find that the male wage elasticity of labour supply to the firm significantly increases with the number of children, while the female elasticity is not significantly altered. That is, we find evidence that male labour markets become more competitive with the arrival of children. Our results also show that firms have substantial monopsonistic power and, in line with the monopsony theory of the gender pay gap, that male labour markets are more competitive than female markets.

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  • Céline Detilleux & Nick Deschacht, 2021. "The causal effect of the number of children on gender‐specific labour supply elasticities to the firm," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(1), pages 2-24, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:indrel:v:52:y:2021:i:1:p:2-24
    DOI: 10.1111/irj.12314
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    2. Roupakias, Stelios, 2022. "Employment and distributional effects of Greece’s national minimum wage," MPRA Paper 114244, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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