Divorce Risk Factors Across Finnish Marriage cohorts, 1954-1989

This paper examines whether there has been a change in the effects of three divorce risk factors, female educational attainment, cohabitation, and parity. Several theoretical reasons suggest such a change, but the existing evidence gives mixed results. First marriages of Finnish women married between 1954 and 1989 are analysed using data from the Fertility and Family Surveys (FFS), collected in 1989 and 1990. The results from the discrete-time event history models show that the effect of having children on marital stability has changed: the impact of having two children has become less evident, while the effect of having three children or more has increased. These trends hold after controlling for young children and premarital children. Some explanations for this shift are discussed

Children and dual worklessness in Europe: a comparison of nine countries

Parents' labour market status is a strong determinant of children’s economic well-being, and children living in jobless households are particularly vulnerable. However, previous research has not focused on the association between children and household worklessness. In this paper, I used ECHP data from nine European countries to analyse the effects of the number and age of children on the probability that neither partner of a couple works. Results from random-effects regressions show that children increase the risk of dual worklessness in five of the countries. The effects were particularly strong in the United Kingdom and Ireland, and more generally, stronger in countries with little institutional support for working mothers, low levels of employment protection, and unexpectedly, where benefits were less likely to be means-tested. The risk of dual joblessness diminished with the age of the youngest child in Belgium, Finland, France and the United Kingdom and more generally, slower in countries with a strict employment protection regime and a high level of means-testing of social benefits. Having children can thus affect the labour market position of households, and influence their economic well-being. However, these effects can be shaped by the social policy and labour market solutions countries adopt.La situation des parents par rapport à l'emploi est un déterminant important du bien-être économique des enfants, et les enfants vivant dans des ménages où les parents n’ont pas de travail sont particulièrement vulnérables. Cependant, les recherches antérieures se sont peu intéressées à l’association entre présence d’enfants et chômage des parents. À partir de données issues du PCM pour neuf pays européens, cet article analyse les effets du nombre et de l'âge des enfants sur la probabilité que les deux parents soient sans emploi. Les résultats de régressions à effets aléatoires montrent que la présence d’enfants augmente ce risque dans cinq de ces pays. Les effets sont particulièrement importants au Royaume-Uni et en Irlande, et en général, plus élevés dans les pays qui proposent peu de soutien institutionnel aux mères qui travaillent, où la garantie de l'emploi est faible et, de manière inattendue, où les aides sociales sont moins souvent soumises à conditions de ressources. Le risque que les deux parents soient sans emploi décroît avec l'âge du plus jeune enfant en Belgique, en Finlande, en France et au Royaume-Uni, et en général, décroît plus lentement dans les pays ayant un régime strict de garantie de l'emploi et où les aides sociales sont les plus soumises à conditions de ressources. La présence d'enfants peut donc avoir un impact sur le situation des ménages par rapport à l'emploi et influencer leur bien-être économique. Cependant, ces effets varient en fonction des politiques sociales et des aménagements du marché du travail mis en oeuvre par les États

Obesity, Unemployment, and Earnings

The article analyses the effects of obesity—a clear signal of weight abnormality—on unemployment and earnings among Finnish men and women. Our empirical data consist of the last four waves (waves 4 to 8) of the Finnish section of the European Community Household Panel (ECHP) data collected between 1998 and 2001. According to our results, obese women have a significantly higher risk of unemployment (even after controlling for age, level of education and other related factors), than women who are not obese. Furthermore, the generally weaker occupational positions of obese women tend to translate to lower earnings. Overall, obese women are more likely to have weaker labour market attachment  and hold socio-economically weaker positions. Similar results were not found among men. Thus, our results indicate the presence of gender discrimination in the Finnish labour market. In the conclusions we further discuss weight related impacts on succeeding in the labour market, but also its role as a possible risk factor in drifting away from employment. We reflect on this issue as a form of inequality that can have an increasing significance in the future

Cash-for-Care Use and Union Dissolution in Finland

First published online: 17 November 2020Objective This study examines how the receipt of the cash-for-care (CFC) benefit affects short- and long-term risks of union dissolution.Background Several theories predict that couples' gendered division of labor decreases their risk of separation, either due to increased partnership satisfaction or because it establishes economic dependency. Family policies such as the Finnish CFC benefit, which is paid if a young child does not attend public daycare, may encourage such a gendered division of labor, at least temporarily.Method Using Finnish register data, this study analyzes the first childbearing unions of 38,093 couples between 1987 and 2009. Discrete-time event history analyses and fixed effects models for nonrepeated events are applied.Results The results suggest a lower separation risk while the benefit is received as compared to couples who do not use it, but no effect in the long-term. Fixed effects models that control for selection into CFC indicate postponement of separation until after take-up. Higher-income mothers show a stronger postponement effect, possibly due to greater income following leave.Conclusion CFC use, which signals a temporary gendered division of labor and losses in mothers' earnings, predicts a lower separation risk during receipt of the benefit, but not beyond.Implications Policies that affect the division of paid and unpaid labor at best only temporarily reduce dissolution risks

Over-coverage in population registers leads to bias in demographic estimates.

Published online: 14 Nov 2019 Estimating the number of individuals living in a country is an essential task for demographers. This study assesses the potential bias in estimating the size of different migrant populations due to over-coverage in population registers. Over-coverage-individuals registered but not living in a country-is an increasingly pressing phenomenon however, there is no common understanding of how to deal with over-coverage in demographic research. This study examines different approaches to and improvements in over-coverage estimation using Swedish total population register data. We assess over-coverage levels across migrant groups, test how estimates of age-specific death and fertility rates are affected when adjusting for over-coverage, and examine whether over-coverage can explain part of the healthy migrant paradox. Our results confirm the existence of over-coverage and we find substantial changes in mortality and fertility rates, when adjusted, for people of migrating age. Accounting for over-coverage is particularly important for correctly estimating migrant fertility. Strategic Research Council of the Academy of Finland [293103] Swedish Research CouncilSwedish Research Council [340-2013-5164] Swedish Research Council for Health, Working life and WelfareSwedish Research CouncilSwedish Research Council for Health Working Life & Welfare (Forte

Liikalihavuus, työttömyys ja ansiotaso

Artikkelissa tarkastellaan liikalihavuuden vaikutusta suomalaisten miesten ja naisten työttömyyteen ja ansiotuloihin. Keskitymme tarkastelussa liikalihavuuteen koko painoindeksiskaalan käytön sijaan, koska liikalihavuutta voidaan pitää esimerkiksi lievää ylipainoa yksiselitteisempänä signaalina normaalipainosta poikkeavuudelle. Artikkelin empiirinen osio perustuu European Community Household Panelin (ECHP) Suomen osa-aineistoon vuosilta 1998–2001. Liikalihavien naisten työttömyysriski on yli kaksinkertainen myös koulutustason, iän, ja muiden keskeisten tekijöiden vakioinnin jälkeen. Lisäksi liikalihavat naiset ansaitsevat samojen tekijöiden vakioinnin jälkeen viisi prosenttia muita vähemmän, osittain heidän heikommasta ammattiasemastaan ja työmarkkinakiinnittymisestään johtuen. Liikalihavat naiset ovat muita suuremmassa vaarassa ajautua työelämän ulkopuolelle ja ajautua taloudellisesti ja ammatillisesti heikompiin asemiin. Miesten kohdalla vastaavia vaikutuksia ei löydetty. Tulokset viittaavat näin ollen työmarkkinoilla esiintyvään sukupuolisyrjintään. Johtopäätöksissä keskustellaan ylipainon vaikutuksesta työmarkkinoilla menestymiseen ja sen merkityksestä työelämän ulkopuolelle ajautumista edistävänä riskitekijänä. Ilmiötä pohditaan myös sellaisena sosiaalisen epätasa-arvon muotona, jonka merkitys luultavasti korostuu tulevaisuudessa