Is Part-Time Employment Here to Stay? Evidence from the Dutch Labour Force Survey 1992-2005

30 Pages Posted: 23 May 2008

See all articles by Nicole Bosch

Nicole Bosch

CPB Netherlands Bureau of Economic Policy Analysis

Anja Deelen

CPB Netherlands Bureau of Economic Policy Analysis

Rob Euwals

CPB Netherlands Bureau of Economic Policy Research; IZA Institute of Labor Economics; Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)

Abstract

To balance work and family responsibilities, the Netherlands have chosen a unique model that combines a high female employment rate with a high part-time employment rate. The model is likely to be the result of (societal) preferences as the removal of institutional barriers, like lower marginal tax rates for partners and better childcare facilities, has not led to more working hours. It is, however, an open question whether the model is here to stay or whether younger generations of women will choose full-time jobs in the near future. We investigate the development of working hours over successive generations of women using the Dutch Labour Force Survey 1992-2005. We find evidence of an increasing propensity to work part-time over the successive generations, and a decreasing propensity to work full-time for the generations born after the early 1950s. Our results are in line with results of studies on social norms and attitudes as they find a similar pattern over the successive generations. It therefore seems likely that without changes in (societal) preferences the part-time employment model is indeed here to stay for some more time.

Keywords: female labour supply, working hours

JEL Classification: J16, J22

Suggested Citation

Bosch, Nicole and Deelen, Anja and Euwals, Rob, Is Part-Time Employment Here to Stay? Evidence from the Dutch Labour Force Survey 1992-2005. IZA Working Paper No. 3367, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1135943 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1135943

Nicole Bosch (Contact Author)

CPB Netherlands Bureau of Economic Policy Analysis ( email )

P.O. Box 80510
2508 GM The Hague, 2585 JR
Netherlands

Anja Deelen

CPB Netherlands Bureau of Economic Policy Analysis ( email )

P.O. Box 80510
2508 GM The Hague, 2585 JR
Netherlands

Rob Euwals

CPB Netherlands Bureau of Economic Policy Research ( email )

P.O. Box 80510
2508 GM The Hague, 2585 JR
Netherlands
+31 70 33 83 438 (Phone)
+31 70 33 83 350 (Fax)

IZA Institute of Labor Economics ( email )

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany
+49 228 3894 302 (Phone)
+49 228 3894 210 (Fax)

Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)

London
United Kingdom

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