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Changes in the Labour Force Status of Lone and Couple Australian Mothers, 1983-2005

Author

Listed:
  • Matthew Gray

    (Australian Institute of Family Studies)

  • Lixia Qu

    (La Trobe University)

Abstract

Over the last two decades there has been a substantial increase in the proportion of lone mothers employed part-time, while the proportion employed full-time was much the same in 2005 as it was in the early 1980s. The experience of couple mothers is quite different, with both full-time and part-time employment increasing at similar rates. The net effect is that both lone and couple mothers have had similar increases in overall employment rates but that the nature of the growth in employment has been different among the lone and couple mother populations. This paper uses data from the 1986 and 2001 Australian Censuses to explore the possible reasons for the differences in the labour market trends of lone and couple mothers.

Suggested Citation

  • Matthew Gray & Lixia Qu, 2006. "Changes in the Labour Force Status of Lone and Couple Australian Mothers, 1983-2005," Australian Journal of Labour Economics (AJLE), Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC), Curtin Business School, vol. 9(4), pages 395-416, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:ozl:journl:v:9:y:2006:i:4:p:395-416
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Bob Gregory, 1999. "Children and the Changing Labour Market: Joblessness in Families with Dependent Children," CEPR Discussion Papers 406, Centre for Economic Policy Research, Research School of Economics, Australian National University.
    2. Anh T. Le & Paul W. Miller, 2000. "An Evaluation of Inertia Models of Unemployment," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 33(3), pages 205-220, September.
    3. Denise Doiron & Guyonne Kalb, 2005. "Demands for Child Care and Household Labour Supply in Australia," The Economic Record, The Economic Society of Australia, vol. 81(254), pages 215-236, September.
    4. William E. Even & David A. Macpherson, 1993. "The Decline of Private-Sector Unionism and the Gender Wage Gap," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 28(2), pages 279-296.
    5. Liam Lenten, 2000. "The Profile of Labour Force Discouragement in Australia," Australian Journal of Labour Economics (AJLE), Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC), Curtin Business School, vol. 4(1), pages 3-17, March.
    6. Trevor Breusch & Edith Gray, 2004. "New Estimates of Mothers’ Forgone Earnings Using HILDA Data," Australian Journal of Labour Economics (AJLE), Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC), Curtin Business School, vol. 7(2), pages 125-150, June.
    7. Denise J. Doiron, 2004. "Welfare Reform and the Labour Supply of Lone Parents in Australia: A Natural Experiment Approach," The Economic Record, The Economic Society of Australia, vol. 80(249), pages 157-176, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Boyd Hunter & Matthew Gray, 2012. "Indigenous Labour Supply following a Period of Strong Economic Growth," Australian Journal of Labour Economics (AJLE), Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC), Curtin Business School, vol. 15(2), pages 141-159.
    2. Jennifer Baxter & Jennifer Renda, 2011. "Lone and couple mothers in the Australian labour market: differences in employment transitions," Australian Journal of Labour Economics (AJLE), Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC), Curtin Business School, vol. 14(2), pages 103-122.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Labor Economics; Labor Economics Policies; Time Allocation and Labor Supply;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J01 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - Labor Economics: General
    • J08 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - Labor Economics Policies
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply

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