The Public Sector, Family Structure, and Labor Market Behavior

Abstract

Recent research has suggested that the characteristics of paid work affect trade-offs between women's activities in the family and employment spheres. One argument suggests that public sector employment, more so than private sector employment, provides conditions that are amenable to the combination of paid work and family. In this article, the authors exploit panel-type data to compare the labor market behavior of Jewish Israeli women in the years following childbirth and focus on differential labor market activity among women with employment histories in the public and private sectors. Their findings point to significant interaction effects between previous sector of employment and childbearing behavior and suggest that the welfare state, through the provision of "family friendly" employment opportunities, plays a role in encouraging women's paid labor in the years following childbirth.

Economic Determinants of Divorce Among Dual-Earner Couples: Jews in Israel

“…According to previous studies (e.g., Castles 2003;Okun et al 2007), public sector employment provides conditions that are conducive to the combining of paid work and family life for women. Due to the family-friendly working conditions in the public sector relative to the private sector, it may be expected that public sector employment will reduce the risk of divorce among dual-earner couples.…”

The Determinants of Women's Employment Dynamics: The Case of Israeli Women

“…Israel is still a patriarchal society, placing high value on familialism and expecting women to take care of family and children. On the other hand, Israel's social policy supports the incorporation of women into the labour market (Stier et al, 2001;Okun et al, 2007). For example, like other European countries (e.g.…”

“…We deal with each of these in turn. To begin with, state employment (the public sector) growth has been associated with increased demand for women's employment (OECD, 1982), and is thus seen as an important force propelling women into the labour market (Gornick and Jacobs, 1998;Mandel and Semyonov, 2006;Okun et al, 2007). The importance of the public sector for women's employment is far greater than merely providing employment opportunities.…”

“…These jobs may offer benefits and protection, flexible, often shorter, working hours, and good opportunities for promotion and authority (Wright et al, 1995;Gornick and Jacobs, 1998). Public sector employment provides a 'familyfriendly' environment, which allows women to maintain their attachment to the labour force even when their family demands are high (Esping-Andersen, 1990;Kolberg and Esping-Andersen, 1991;Gornick and Meyers, 2003;Okun et al, 2007). Taniguchi and Rosenfeld (2002), for example, found a negative and statistically significant effect of the public sector on employment withdrawal among white women in the US.…”

“…The public sector is also the context in which social policies and arrangements are adhered to closely (Bihagen and Ohls, 2006;Okun et al, 2007). Employment-supportive policies offer special arrangements for combining work and family demands, such as paid and unpaid maternity leave, reduced working hours, and other benefits especially designed for parents (Gornick and Meyers, 2003).…”