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The impact of cash-benefit reform on parents’ labour force participation

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  • Ghazala Naz

Abstract

This paper evaluates the impact of a recent Norwegian family-policy reform. The reform provides benefits of up to NOK 3,000 (approximately € 400) per month to families with one- to three-year-old children, who do not utilize state-subsidized day-care centres. We investigate the reform’s effect on parents’ labour force participation. We find that, on average, the reform reduced women’s labour force participation and increased the specialization of work between couples. We find that the effect of the reform depends on women’s schooling. Specifically, the labour force participation of highly educated mothers fell by more than that of mothers with less education. Copyright Springer-Verlag 2004

Suggested Citation

  • Ghazala Naz, 2004. "The impact of cash-benefit reform on parents’ labour force participation," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 17(2), pages 369-383, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:jopoec:v:17:y:2004:i:2:p:369-383
    DOI: 10.1007/s00148-003-0157-y
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Public policy; cash benefits; specialization; I38; J16; J22;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
    • 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

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