TY - UNPB
T1 - Escaping the motherhood trap: Parental leave and childcare help young mothers to avoid NEET risks
AU - van Vugt, Lynn
AU - Nieuwenhuis, Rense
AU - Levels, Mark
PY - 2020/12/14
Y1 - 2020/12/14
N2 - This paper explores to what extent and how the risk that young mothers become NEET (Not in Employment, Education or Training) later in life is related to family policy provisions (i.e. parental leave and Early Childhood Education and Care). We examine a three-staged process: the relation between (a) characteristics of family policies and the use of it, (b) the use of family policy provisions and NEET risks, and (c) the effectiveness of family policy provisions on the characteristics of these family policies. Combining data from the EU-LFS with macro-level indicators of family policies, we analyse NEET risks of 13,613 young mothers (20-29) in 27 EU-countries. We find that young mothers are more likely to take parental leave if it is paid for a longer period of time, and are more likely to use ECEC when childcare placement is guaranteed. Both parental leave and ECEC services are associated with lower NEET risks, as long as they are not used for overly short or long periods. However, this depends largely on the way parental leave is organised. In addition, in countries where ECEC is more affordable, young mothers who use ECEC are better protected against NEET risks later in life.
AB - This paper explores to what extent and how the risk that young mothers become NEET (Not in Employment, Education or Training) later in life is related to family policy provisions (i.e. parental leave and Early Childhood Education and Care). We examine a three-staged process: the relation between (a) characteristics of family policies and the use of it, (b) the use of family policy provisions and NEET risks, and (c) the effectiveness of family policy provisions on the characteristics of these family policies. Combining data from the EU-LFS with macro-level indicators of family policies, we analyse NEET risks of 13,613 young mothers (20-29) in 27 EU-countries. We find that young mothers are more likely to take parental leave if it is paid for a longer period of time, and are more likely to use ECEC when childcare placement is guaranteed. Both parental leave and ECEC services are associated with lower NEET risks, as long as they are not used for overly short or long periods. However, this depends largely on the way parental leave is organised. In addition, in countries where ECEC is more affordable, young mothers who use ECEC are better protected against NEET risks later in life.
KW - NEET
KW - motherhood
KW - family policies
KW - parental leave
KW - early childhood education and care
KW - European Union
U2 - 10.26481/umaror.2020011
DO - 10.26481/umaror.2020011
M3 - Working paper
T3 - ROA Research Memoranda
BT - Escaping the motherhood trap: Parental leave and childcare help young mothers to avoid NEET risks
PB - ROA
CY - Maastricht
ER -