How do Work-family Balance Policies Affect Women’s Work-family Reconciliation?: Direct and Indirect Effects on Women’s Labor Income

Abstract

This study was designed to examine if the work-family balance policies affect women’s work-family reconciliation and how they affect women’s labor income in detail using multi-level data (Luxembourg Income Study) with multi-level model. Work-family balance policies are enrolment rate of children not yet three years of age in formal child care, enrolment rate of children three to five years of age in formal child care, parental leave FTE paid, part-time employment rate, and average working hours. The subjects of the study are 25-45 year old working women and the dependent variable is their yearly labor income (logged). The analysis results are enrolment rate of 0-2 year-old children has 1) a direct effect on the women’s labor income and 2) indirect effect buffering the negative effect of care burden on the women’s labor income. However, parental leave FTE paid has only an indirect effect and enrolment rate of 3-5 year-old children has no statistically significant effect. Part-time employment rate and average working hours affect women’s labor income but don’t have any indirect effect. The implication of this study is that child care service for 0-2 year-old children should aim for work-family reconciliation of working parents and parental benefit should increase to an optimum level. In addition, work-life balance policies on working time(shorter working hours and flexi-time) are effective.