Ondrich study on maternity leave policy and the return to work after childbirth published in REH

Dec 31, 2002

The Liberalization of Maternity Leave Policy and the Return to Work after Childbirth in Germany

Jan Ondrich, C. Katharina Spiess, Qing Yang & Gert G. Wagner

Review of Economics of the Household, December 2002

Jan Ondrich

Economics Department

Center for Policy Research

Europe

Review of Economics of the Household

Jan Ondrich

German federal law has increased the potential duration of maternity leave five times since 1985. A theoretical model demonstrates that the cumulative return probability at potential duration cannot decline unless the mother's employment conditions or career expectations change. The authors estimate return to work hazards from the German Socio-Economic Panel for women bearing children in the period 1984–1991 and predict cumulative return probabilities for first-time mothers and mothers with a previous birth. The pattern of cumulative return probabilities as potential duration increases is consistent with the hypothesis that employment conditions or career expectations frequently change for mothers taking longer leaves.