Labour Market and Financial Consequences of Divorce and Separation

Lívia Murinkó , Hungarian Demographic Research Institute
Zsolt Spéder, Hungarian Demographic Reserach Institute

Divorce and separation may have different consequences for the economic well-being of the former partners, depending on their resources, opportunities, constraints, and coping strategies. The most common outcome is the deterioration of financial circumstances, especially for women and mothers. However, women may also improve their post-separation financial situation by intensifying their participation in the labour market. The impact of union dissolution on the careers of former partners is an under-researched area. The main objective of the paper is to analyse how the financial and labour market situation of women change after partnership dissolution in Hungary in the short term. We use data from the five longitudinal waves of the Hungarian Generations and Gender Survey (2001–2016/2017) and we look at change between pairs of consecutive waves. We focus on women who had lived with a spouse or partner in one survey wave and this relationship dissolved by the next wave. Only women aged below 60 are analysed. We use various measures of financial and labour market situation and strategies that may help women cope with income loss. We look at divorce from marriage and separation from an unmarried union separately. Results indicate that while many women experience household income loss and an increased risk of poverty after union dissolution, some enter the labour market or intensify their participation to improve their financial situation.

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 Presented in Session 84. Union Trajectories, Separation and Divorce