This paper identifies the impact of increasing post-childbirth work incentives on mothers’ long-run careers. We exploit variation in work incentives across mothers based on the timing of a first birth and eligibility for the 1993 expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit. Ten to nineteen years after a first birth, single mothers who were exposed to the expansion immediately after birth (“early”), rather than 3-6 years later (“late”), have 0.62 more years of work experience and 4.2% higher earnings conditional on working. We show that higher earnings are primarily explained by improved wages due to greater work experience.
Suggested citation:
Kuka, Elira, and Na’ama Shenhav. 2023. “Long-Run Effects of Incentivizing Work After Childbirth.” Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Working Paper 2023-27. https://doi.org/10.24148/wp2023-27