Child Penalties in Canada

Marie Connolly Marie Melanie Fontaine Catherine Haeck

Canadian Public Policy, 2023, vol. 49, issue 4, 399-420

Abstract: Having children has a sizeable impact on women's labour outcomes, but not on men's. The differential effects of children by gender, referred to as child penalties, are now documented in many countries. In this paper, we exploit the Longitudinal and International Study of Adults to estimate Canadian child penalties in both earnings and employment for a period going from five years before the birth of the first child to ten years after birth. Using an event study methodology, we find large and persistent negative effects of parenthood for mothers, but not fathers. Mothers' earnings decrease by 49 percent at the year of birth, with a penalty still at 34.3 percent ten years after birth; the corresponding penalty in employment is 14.2 percent. We also document larger negative impacts of parenthood for women who have multiple children or those with a lower education level. Finally, we provide suggestive evidence that family policies such as parental leave and subsidized childcare may help reduce child penalties.

Keywords: child penalties; family gap; Canada; family policies; subsidized childcare (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J13 J31 J38 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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