Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/322209 
Year of Publication: 
2025
Series/Report no.: 
Working Paper No. 2025:11
Publisher: 
Institute for Evaluation of Labour Market and Education Policy (IFAU), Uppsala
Abstract: 
We study how changes in couples' relative wages affect the division of childcare. Using a nationwide wage reform that raised pay in the female-dominated teaching profession, we find that closing 25% of the earnings gap between female teachers and their male spouses led to a 12% reduction in the childcare time gap. This result holds when we extend the analysis to major pay raises for women at the population level. Data support the mechanism that women reduce their childcare time when the spouse can step in by working more from home. Policies that address female pay can foster household equality if men have access to flexible work arrangements.
Subjects: 
Household behavior
Childcare responsibility
Gender gaps
Working from home
JEL: 
D13
J16
J22
Document Type: 
Working Paper

Files in This Item:
File
Size





Items in EconStor are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.