Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/224038 
Year of Publication: 
2020
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 13596
Publisher: 
Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
Does leave-taking matter for young workers' careers? If so, why? We propose the competition effect—relative leave status of workers affecting their relative standing inside the firm—as a new explanation. Exploiting a policy reform that exogenously assigned four-week paid paternity leave to some new fathers, we find evidence consistent with the competition effect: A worker enjoys a better post-child earnings trajectory when a larger share of his colleagues take leave because of the policy. In contrast, we find no direct earnings effect resulting from the worker's own leave when controlling for their relative leave eligibility status within the firm.
Subjects: 
leave of absence
career interruptions
ranking
tournament
promotion
gender gap
JEL: 
M51
M52
J16
J22
J24
J31
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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