Married women who are active in the workforce play a significant role in influencing their husbands to follow suit. But the reverse does not hold true, according to new research.
The research also focuses on couples with a mature-aged husband and estimates the interdependence of the labour force participation decision of the couple.
Using data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey and released by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER), this paper investigates the labour force participation decisions made by mature-aged Australian couples from 2001 to 2011.
“The evidence is clear that married women who are employed encourage their husbands to remain in the workforce.
“The paper estimates that the increased participation of married women in the labour force between the aforementioned time period, has seen an approximate four-percent increase of husbands (in the 55-64 age group) taking up employment,” said Rod Camm, NCVER’s Managing Director.
Mr Camm said husbands are also influenced by their wife’s decision to retire.
“Existing literature has shown that the retirement status of a wife significantly affects the retirement preference of a husband; while wives appear to be less sensitive to the participation status of their spouses,” he said.
The study also found that the workforce participation rate of mature-aged men increased from 62% in 2001 to 73% in 2011; and in the same period, workforce activity of their wives rose from 50% to 63%.
Copies of The labour force participation of Australian mature-aged men: the role of spousal participation, are available from www.ncver.edu.au/publications/2702.html
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