The Motherhood Pension Gap and the Role of Pension-Related Childcare Credits: Evidence from France and Germany

Carole Bonnet, Ined
Michaela Kreyenfeld, Hertie School
Benoît Rapoport, Paris 1 University
Sarah Schmauk , Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities

This paper investigates the motherhood pension gap (MPG) in France, East and West Germany, focusing on the role of pension-related childcare credits in mitigating inequalities by number of children in pension outcomes. While the “child penalty” in wages has been widely studied, the long-term implications of childbearing for mothers’ pension entitlements remain less explored. Using administrative pension records from both countries, we apply a harmonised methodology to the 1950–1978 birth cohorts. We calculate women’s accumulated pension rights at ages 45 and 60, with and without considering pension-related childcare credits, by the number of children. Results show that public pension levels decline more steeply with the number of children in West Germany than in France, whereas in East Germany, mothers with one or two children display pension levels comparable to or higher than those of childless women. Pension-related childcare credits significantly reduce these differences, particularly in France, where they almost fully offset the motherhood pension gap at age 45. In West Germany, the compensatory effect is also substantial but less pronounced. By age 60, however, the effect of childcare credits partly fades, suggesting that persistent labour market inequalities continue to shape pension outcomes. Overall, the findings highlight the key function of pension-related childcare credits. They constitute an important policy instrument to narrow child-related pension gaps, yet their capacity to compensate for cumulative labour market disadvantages of mothers remains limited over the life course.

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 Presented in Session 65. Policy Issues on Ageing: Employment, Pensions and Public Perceptions