Firms, flexibility, and fertility

Guner, Nezih, Kaya, Ezgi ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1909-2649, Ruggieri, Alessandro and Sanchez-Marcos, Virginia 2025. Firms, flexibility, and fertility. [Working Paper]. CEMFI Working Papers, vol. 2525. CEMFI. Available at: https://www.cemfi.es/ftp/wp/2525.pdf

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Abstract

This paper examines the impact of workplace flexibility on female labor market outcomes and fertility, with a particular focus on the Spanish labor market. Using a variety of data sources—including labor force surveys, time-use surveys, and administrative records—we document that rigid schedules, split-shift work arrangements, and long working hours increase the time cost of childcare, reducing women’s participation, wage growth, and career progression. Flexible arrangements, by contrast, facilitate work–family balance but are unevenly distributed across firms, sectors, and occupations. We present a simple model in which job inflexibility lowers both labor force participation and fertility, especially among mothers. We also provide a survey of the literature on the value of flexibility, the costs of family-friendly policies, and equilibrium models linking firm behavior to fertility decisions.

Item Type:	Monograph (Working Paper)
Date Type:	Published Online
Status:	Published
Schools:	Schools > Business (Including Economics)
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HB Economic Theory
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Fertility, Flexibility, Family-Friendly Policies, Gender Gaps.
Publisher:	CEMFI
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	3 November 2025
Last Modified:	11 Nov 2025 13:00
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/182044

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