Abstract
This paper examines how parenthood affects the earnings trajectories of mothers and fathers in the Norwegian labor market. I combine a stacked event-study framework with coarsened matching of parents to same-age peers to estimate dynamic effects on labor earnings, work hours, and the wage rate. I assess the relative importance of three alternative dynamics underlying the earnings penalty: temporary career stagnation, continued slower career progression, and work-hour responses. The results show that parenthood is associated with an earnings penalty for both mothers and fathers, although the penalty is substantially larger for mothers. The dynamics of wage-rate and work-hour trajectories indicate that entering parenthood is associated with temporary career stagnation around the parental-leave period for both women and men, with a larger average effect for mothers. In addition, mothers experience a persistent change in work-hour trajectories following childbirth. Overall, the analyses suggest that on average, parenthood do not slow down career progression after returning to work for either gender. However, there is considerable heterogeneity in both the magnitude and the dynamics of post-birth earnings changes, particularly among mothers. This heterogeneity is driven primarily by differences in average work-hour responses rather than continued slower average wage-rate growth.
The seminar will be held in room 1249 (12th floor) at Eilert Sundts Hus. The address is Moltke Moes vei 31.