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Availability of Family-Friendly Work Practices and Implicit Wage Costs: New Evidence from Canada

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  • Fakih, Ali

    (Lebanese American University)

Abstract

Using Canadian linked employer-employee data covering the period 1999-2005, I examine the determinants of the availability of family-friendly "care" practices and the impact of such practices on wages. The results show that the provision of family-friendly practices is not mainly derived from socio-demographic characteristics of workers but rather from job- and firm-related factors. The findings also reveal that there is a trade-off between the provision of family-friendly practices and earnings indicating the existence of an implicit market in which workers face reductions in their wages. This result supports the hypothesis that family-friendly benefits are to some extent conceived as a gift or a signal that employers care about employees' family responsibilities and, in return, employees are willing to “buy” these practices and thus accept a wage offset.

Suggested Citation

  • Fakih, Ali, 2014. "Availability of Family-Friendly Work Practices and Implicit Wage Costs: New Evidence from Canada," IZA Discussion Papers 8190, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp8190
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    Cited by:

    1. Verena Lauber & Johanna Storck, 2016. "Helping with the Kids? How Family-Friendly Workplaces Affect Parental Well-Being and Behavior," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 883, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    2. Uwe Jirjahn & Jens Mohrenweiser, 2021. "Works councils and organizational gender policies in Germany," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 59(4), pages 1020-1048, December.
    3. Ariane Pailhé & Anne Solaz, 2019. "Is there a wage cost for employees in family‐friendly workplaces? The effect of different employer policies," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(5), pages 688-721, June.
    4. repec:diw:diwwpp:dp1630 is not listed on IDEAS
    5. Verena Lauber & Sarah Reiter & Johanna Storck, 2015. "Familienfreundlichkeit in Unternehmen - Status Quo in Deutschland und Forschungsstand," DIW Roundup: Politik im Fokus 77, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    6. Özgür Demirtaş & Aykut Arslan & Mustafa Karaca, 2019. "Why perceived organizational and supervisory family support is important for organizations? Evidence from the field," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 13(4), pages 841-869, August.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    family-friendly care practices; linked employer-employee data; simultaneous probit model; wage equation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • J32 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Nonwage Labor Costs and Benefits; Retirement Plans; Private Pensions
    • J70 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Discrimination - - - General

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