The effect of career breaks on the working lives of women

Abstract

In this paper we examine the effect of career breaks on the working lives of women using survey data from the state of Queensland in Australia. After estimating the income penalty faced by women with career interruptions – according to the duration of, and reasons for, the interruptions – we seek to address a wider set of issues regarding: patterns of job change and income gains or losses related to job change; determinants of career re-entry plans; and satisfaction with hours worked. As women increasingly combine motherhood and employment, they face both penalties and costs, particularly if they have taken a career break in order to care for their young. This general labor market failure that penalizes motherhood should be addressed by relevant measures related to their income, working hours, and the type and status of employment, particularly on their re-entry into employment after a child-related career break.

Keywords:

• Gender
• labor market
• career breaks
• motherhood
• income penalty

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Vani Borooah acknowledges the Queensland Treasury's support in providing him with data from the Survey of Queensland Women and with a Research Fellowship toward this project. In particular, he thanks Peta Frampton and Don Bennett, from Queensland Treasury, for help and advice with the data. All the authors are grateful to the editor, an associate editor, and three anonymous referees for comments that have substantively improved the paper. Special thanks are due to a style editor for greatly improving the quality of the writing. However, the authors remain solely responsible for any errors.

Notes

JEL Codes: J16, J31

Annual income (in Australian dollars) before taxes, including pensions and investment income. Unfortunately, the survey did not have any information on earnings, wages, or any information on pre- and post-break incomes.

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Additional information

Notes on contributors

Shoba V Arun

JEL Codes: J16, J31