Moving Up, Moving Out, or Going Nowhere? A Study of the Employment Patterns of Young Women and the Implications for Welfare Mothers

Pavetti, LaDonna; Acs, Gregory

doi:10.1002/pam.1025.abs

Cited by 8 publications

(8 citation statements)

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“…Employment among less-skilled women is characterized by instability, low earnings and rates of benefit coverage, and limited opportunities for advancement (Johnson and Corcoran, 2003; Martinson, 2000; Pavetti and Acs, 2001; Wood et al, 2008). The results of the NEWWS IV models, paired with a comparison of program impacts between NEWWS and MFIP, indicate that interventions that induce employment without increasing family income or the probability of health insurance coverage may be detrimental to young children’s health (though a conclusive assessment of these trade-offs would be premature without a full cost-benefit analysis that also considers, for example, the tax-payer benefit from increased maternal earnings).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maternal employment and the health of low-income young children

Gennetian

Hill

London

et al. 2010

Journal of Health Economics

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This study examines whether maternal employment affects the health status of low-income, elementary-school-aged children using instrumental variables estimation and experimental data from a welfare-to-work program implemented in the early 1990s. Mother's report of child health status is predicted as a function of exogenous variation in maternal employment associated with random assignment to the program group. IV estimates show a modest adverse effect of maternal employment on children's health. Making use of data from another welfare-to-work program we propose that any adverse effect on child health may be tempered by increased family income and access to public health insurance coverage, findings with direct relevance to a number of current policy discussions. In a secondary analysis using fixed effects techniques on longitudinal survey data collected in 1998 and 2001, we find a comparable adverse effect of maternal employment on child health that supports the external validity of our primary result.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maternal employment and the health of low-income young children

Gennetian

Hill

London

et al. 2010

Journal of Health Economics

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“…A number of studies both before and after the 1996 welfare reform have documented that personal characteristics are important determinants of economic and employment outcomes. Greater levels of human capital (e.g., education, work experience, skills) predict shorter welfare spells, leaving welfare for employment, and staying off welfare for longer periods of time (Bane & Ellwood, 1994; Harris, 1996), as well as higher earning trajectories (Meyer & Cancian, 1998) and better quality jobs (Pavetti & Acs, 2001). Demographic characteristics such as race, age, marital status, and number and ages of children (Bane & Ellwood; Harris), as well as health and psychological factors (Danziger, Kalil, & Anderson, 2000), are also related to indicators of employment and economic well‐being.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The labor market represents the primary nonwelfare context to seek economic support, and research has demonstrated the high level of employment activity among families leaving TANF (Loprest & Wissoker, 2002). Recipients typically find short‐term jobs, however, that pay low wages with minimal benefits (Johnson & Corcoran, 2003; Pavetti & Acs, 2001). As a result, they may turn to informal support‐givers for assistance not available from the labor market or governmental sources.…”

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confidence: 99%

The contribution of social support to the material well‐being of low‐income families

Henly

Danziger

Offer

2005

J of Marriage and Family

225

189

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We hypothesize that the social support available from low‐income networks serves primarily a coping function, rather than a leverage function. Social support and its relationship to material well‐being is assessed in a sample of 632 former and current welfare recipients. Respondents report higher levels of perceived emotional, instrumental, and informational support than perceived financial support, and received financial aid is particularly uncommon. Multivariate findings demonstrate that perceived support is unrelated to employment quality, but it reduces the likelihood of living in poverty and is associated with three different measures of coping. These findings generally support the contention that informal aid is important for the everyday survival of low‐income families, but is less able to assist with economic mobility.

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“…Parents who previously relied on cash assistance are now required to work and often enter the labor force by way of low-wage, short-tenure jobs, amplifying the odds of forced or voluntary job loss (Boushey, 2001). Even in the tight labor market of the late 1990s, single mothers commonly experienced unstable employment and long periods of unemployment between jobs (Johnson & Corcoran, 2003; Pavetti & Acs, 2001; Wood, Moore, & Rangarajan, 2008), patterns associated with job instability rather than mobility and earnings growth (Johnson, 2007; Royalty, 1998; Topel & Ward, 1992). The recent recessionary economy has only exacerbated these patterns of employment instability.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Getting a job is only half the battle: Maternal job loss and child classroom behavior in low‐income families

Hill

Morris

Castells

et al. 2011

J Policy Anal Manage

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This study uses data from an experimental employment program and instrumental variables (IV) estimation to examine the effects of maternal job loss on child classroom behavior. Random assignment to the treatment at one of three program sites is an exogenous predictor of employment patterns. Cross-site variation in treatment-control differences is used to identify the effects of employment levels and transitions. Under certain assumptions, this method controls for unobserved correlates of job loss and child well-being, as well as measurement error and simultaneity. IV estimates suggest that maternal job loss sharply increases problem behavior but has neutral effects on positive social behavior. Current employment programs concentrate primarily on job entry, but these findings point to the importance of promoting job stability for workers and their children.

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Moving Up, Moving Out, or Going Nowhere? A Study of the Employment Patterns of Young Women and the Implications for Welfare Mothers

Cited by 8 publications

References 0 publications

Maternal employment and the health of low-income young children

Maternal employment and the health of low-income young children

The contribution of social support to the material well‐being of low‐income families

Getting a job is only half the battle: Maternal job loss and child classroom behavior in low‐income families

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