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The motherhood penalty in employment: Evidence from UK Asian mothers during the pandemic

Ji, Yuemei; Qi, Weiwen; (2025) The motherhood penalty in employment: Evidence from UK Asian mothers during the pandemic. Journal of Asian Economics , 100 , Article 102004. 10.1016/j.asieco.2025.102004. Green open access

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Abstract

This study explores the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the labour market outcomes of mothers with school-aged children in the UK, with a focus on gender and ethnicity. We find that Asian mothers face a more pronounced motherhood penalty in terms of unemployment compared to both their White counterparts and Asian fathers. This penalty is particularly strong and statistically significant in contact-intensive industries. Our findings are in line with the view that cultural and social norms associated with ethnicity play a key role in shaping Asian mothers’ responsibilities, both within the home and in the labour market. During school closures, Asian mothers are more likely to assume primary caregiving duties, which increases their risk of unemployment. Further analysis reveals that Asian mothers experience greater mental health challenges during the pandemic. Our findings underscore the need for policies that promote a more equitable distribution of childcare responsibilities, especially within Asian communities. Lessons from this study may also be applicable to Asian countries.

Type: Article
Title: The motherhood penalty in employment: Evidence from UK Asian mothers during the pandemic
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1016/j.asieco.2025.102004
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asieco.2025.102004
Language: English
Additional information: This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ ).
Keywords: Gender disparities, COVID-19, Labor market, Unemployment, Mental health, Asia
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of Arts and Humanities
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10212012
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