RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Schools, Job Flexibility, and Married Women’s Labor Supply
JF Journal of Human Resources
JO J Hum Resour
FD University of Wisconsin Press
SP 0822-12507R1
DO 10.3368/jhr.0822-12507R1
A1 Hansen, Benjamin
A1 Sabia, Joseph J.
A1 Schaller, Jessamyn
YR 2024
UL http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2024/03/01/jhr.0822-12507R1.abstract
AB This study examines the employment effects of a large shock to mothers’ childcare costs generated by changes in the availability of in-person K-12 instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic. We proxy for school attendance using smartphone data from Safegraph. Using a difference-in-differences approach, we find K-12 reopenings are associated with increases in employment and hours among married women with school-aged children, with no measurable effects for childless women, custodial fathers, or unmarried women. Event-study analyses are consistent with a causal interpretation. Major activity responses show reductions in the reported likelihood of remaining out of the labor force to engage in caregiving.