The Menopause ÒPenaltyÓ

Gabriella Conti (), Rita Ginja (), Petra Person () and Barton Willage ()
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Gabriella Conti: University College London, CEPR, CESIFO, HCEO,and IZA.
Rita Ginja: University of Bergen
Petra Person: Stanford University, NBER, and Research Institute of Industrial Economics
Barton Willage: University of Delaware, Department of Economics and NBER

CSEF Working Papers from Centre for Studies in Economics and Finance (CSEF), University of Naples, Italy

Abstract: The motherhood penalty is well-documented, but what happens at the other end of the reproductive spectrum? MenopauseÑa transition often marked by debilitating physical and psychological symptomsÑalso entails substantial costs. Using population-wide Norwegian and Swedish data and quasi-experimental methods, we show that a menopause diagnosis leads to lasting drops in earnings and employment, alongside greater reliance on social transfers. Increasing access to menopause-related health care can help offset these losses. Our findings reveal the hidden economic toll of menopause and the potential gains from better support policies.

Keywords: Menopause; Menopausal Hormone Therapy; Norway; Sweden; quasi-experimental variation; social transfers; low socioeconomic status. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: H72 I00 I30 J21 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026-01-05
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