Tilbe Atav
PhD Candidate at Erasmus University Rotterdam
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I am a PhD Candidate at the Applied Economics department of the Erasmus School of Economics, Erasmus University Rotterdam. I am working under the supervision of Hans van Kippersluis (EUR) and Niels Rietveld (EUR). My research touches on various topics within Labor, Education and Policy Economics. I am particularly interested in how social norms, perceptions and expectations may shape educational and labor market outcomes.You can contact me at t.atav@ese.eur.nl.
Job market paper
Stepping Stones or Sticky Floors?
The Dual Role of Part-Time Work in Mothers’ Return to the Labor Market
Abstract
The career cost of parenthood is thought to be the main driver of the remaining gender gaps in labor market outcomes (Kleven, 2022; Olivetti et al., 2024). The present study takes a new approach to assessing the underlying mechanisms. I evaluate the demand side barriers that slow or stop the return of mothers to the labor market once all their children have entered formal education. Using Dutch administrative data on monthly employment outcomes, I study how sector and company differences in acceptance and accommodation of part-time work affect the labor market choices of women long after the birth of their children. First, I show that raw averages and estimates obtained using the Kleven et al. (2019) model suggest that there are substantial differences across sectors in the behavior of mothers in the years after their youngest child enters formal education. Next, following Nicoletti et al. (2018), I use exogenous peer effects to obtain a more causal interpretation of these differences. By assessing how the peer effects vary across work environments with a differing degree of part-time work, I shed light on the whether part-time work serves as a deterrent or as a facilitator in the return of mothers to the labor market.
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