Unlocking Female Potential: How Parttime Work Transformed the (Dutch) Labor Market
-
Series
-
Speaker
-
FieldEmpirical Microeconomics
-
LocationErasmus University Rotterdam, Campus Woudestein, Mandeville T3-20
Rotterdam -
Date and time
March 26, 2026
12:00 - 13:00
Abstract
This paper examines how parttime work affected the gendered structure of the labor market. We focus on the Netherlands, a country characterized by high female labor force participation and a high prevalence of parttime work. We first show that enabling parttime work had a large impact on female labor force participation, and that it is persistent given that the share of fulltime employment for women did not change in the past 50 years. We then use historical microdata to study two policies that (1) encouraged parttime work on the firm-side, and (2) made it financially attractive for women to work (parttime) by leveraging local political support for these policies. Joint paper with Kyra Hanemaaijer.