Work-Hour Mismatches among Mothers and Fathers in Germany: A Dynamic Analysis of Post-Birth Employment Trajectories

Sophia Fauser , German Institute for Economic Research (DIW)
Emanuela Struffolino, University of Milan

This study examines post-birth employment trajectories of mothers and fathers in Germany, highlighting gender differences in work hour preferences and mismatches to actual employment. Using a dynamic approach, it illustrates how these mismatches evolve as first children grow older. Previous studies on post-birth employment have largely ignored work hour preferences, while research on such preferences have rarely taken a dynamic, longitudinal view. Bridging these literatures is crucial, as work hour mismatches affect well-being and have policy relevance. Recent reforms, like the 2008 childcare expansion act, aiming at facilitating maternal employment, could be more effective if aligned with parents’ preferences. Preliminary results using multichannel sequence analysis on data from the Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP, 2008-2023) reveal that mismatches between actual and preferred working hours among mothers tend to increase as their children grow older. This pattern is particularly pronounced among mothers employed in small part-time jobs, many of whom wish to work more hours (i.e., experience underemployment). In contrast, most mothers working full-time would prefer to reduce their hours (i.e., experience overemployment). Among working fathers, a substantial share of those in full-time positions report feeling overemployed, while some express satisfaction with their current hours. Conversely, most fathers working less than full-time report underemployment. In the next step, we will apply Dirichlet regressions to examine how demographic factors (education, household structure, regional characteristics) relate to patterns of employment and work-hour preferences identified through fuzzy clustering. Additionally, we will analyze Swiss data to explore the influence of the national context.

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 Presented in Session 55. Parenthood, Work and Inequality across the Life Course