The income sources of single parents: A comparative analysis

The aim of this article is to examine the different income sources of single parents using the method of the income packages. The concept of income package highlights the importance of both the source and the level of income of single parent families in different welfare states. These potential sources of income are central when analyzing the nature of support offered by the welfare state to single parents. This article attempts to give answer to the following questions: 1. Is it the case that the degree to which single parents participate in paid employment influences their income packages? In those countries where paid employment is common among single parents, is the main component of their income packages income from work? In contrast, in those countries where paid employment is rare among single parents, are incomes mainly derived from social transfers? 2. How has the income sources of single parents changed during the economic downturn in some countries during the 1990s? Has the dependency on state benefits increased and the amount of income from employment decreased as a result of a weakened labor market position among single parents? The study focuses on the turn of the decade (namely 1983-86 and 1991-95) when social policy was reformed in many countries. The countries selected for this study are Australia, Britain, the US, the Netherlands, Germany, Norway, Finland and Denmark. The article starts with an overview of the different work requirements of single parents across countries. This serves as a platform for empirical analysis on income packages. Then the changes in labor market participation rates of single parents are studied. This is followed by a study of the income packages and income levels of single parents. The article concludes with a discussion of the main research findings

Child maintenance and child poverty: A comparative analysis

This article uses the Luxembourg Income Study datasets from circa 2004 to analyse the contribution child maintenance makes to the reduction of child poverty. The countries compared are Canada, UK, USA, Germany, Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Finland representing countries with different child maintenance schemes. Results show that the contribution that child maintenance makes in reducing overall child poverty is minimal but it can reduce child poverty among non-widowed lone mother families if maintenance is received. Countries guaranteeing child maintenance payments by the state are more effective in reducing child poverty. This article uses the Luxembourg Income Study datasets from circa 2004 to analyse the contribution child maintenance makes to the reduction of child poverty. The countries compared are Canada, UK, USA, Germany, Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Finland representing countries with different child maintenance schemes. Results show that the contribution that child maintenance makes in reducing overall child poverty is minimal but it can reduce child poverty among non-widowed lone mother families if maintenance is received. Countries guaranteeing child maintenance payments by the state are more effective in reducing child poverty

Vignette data in a comparative child maintenance study

In this working paper, we describe the vignette data collection method as used in a research project “Comparative study of child maintenance policies, family complexity and equalities” funded by the Academy of Finland for the years 2016-21. Vignettes represented complex post-separation family scenarios and provided answers to the questions around how child maintenance policies are dealt with when financial responsibility is shared between separated parents. National informants were asked to explain how their country’s child maintenance policy worked and what its outcomes were likely to be, such as the amount of child maintenance owed in each scenario. We describe how the vignettes were constructed, how data was collected and particularly what the strengths and limitations of the method were. We address the central issues that researchers have to deal with when conducting cross-national comparative research using the vignette approach in the domain of child maintenance or any other public policy scheme

Policy Changes, Employment, and Single Parenthood in Finland

The labor supply of mothers is in? uenced by womens preferences and labor market conditions, as well as by family policy packages which enable families to reconcile work and family life. This article deepens the understanding about why Finnish single mothers are facing higher unemployment risks than mothers in two-parent families. The main question is how the changes in the Finnish family policy system have affected the economic and labor market status of single mothers in the last part of the 1990s. Have the changes in family policy affected their entry / re-entry into the labor market? Or can these changes in employment rate be explained by mothers personal decisions. Single parents were more vulnerable compared to partnered mothers in parental leave reforms and in the Family reform package in 1994. Changes in the labor market have had an impact on the situation of mothers with small children. One group of mothers can enjoy the full provision of leaves, bene? ts and job security, but an increased share of mothers have become dependent on only basic bene? ts. In this respect, the inequality among mothers has increased

Lapsen vuoroasuminen ja sosiaaliturva : 11 maan vertailu

Lapsen vuoroasumisella tarkoitetaan yleensä järjestelyä, jossa lapsi asuu molempien vanhempiensa luona suunnilleen yhtä paljon. Vuoroasumisen yleistyminen vanhempien eron jälkei-senä asumisjärjestelynä sekä lapsen huoltoa ja tapaamisoikeutta koskevan lain uudistukset Suomessa ovat asettaneet tarpeen arvioida sosiaaliturvajärjestelmää vuoroasumisen näkökulmasta. Kun lapsi asuu kahdessa kodissa, keskeisiä kysymyksiä ovat, miten vuoroasuminen vaikuttaa oikeuteen saada sosiaaliturvaetuuksia, miten lapsen vuoroasuminen tulisi ottaa huo-mioon eri etuuksista päätettäessä ja tulisiko etuuksia voida jakaa vanhempien kesken. Tässä työpaperissa tutkimme, minkälaisia ratkaisuja eri maissa on otettu käyttöön vuoroasumisen huomioimiseksi eri etuusjärjestelmissä. Sosiaaliturvaetuuksista analysoimme lapsiperheiden ja vuoroasumisen kannalta keskeisimpiä: lapsilisää, elatustukea, asumistukea sekä toimeentulotukea. Lisäksi analysoimme, miten vuoroasuminen vaikuttaa eri maissa elatusavun määräytymiseen. Aineistona käytimme vuonna 2017 kerättyä vignettekyselyaineistoa sekä keräsimme tietoja eri viranomaislähteistä tai aiemmasta tutkimuskirjallisuudesta. Tutkimukseen valitsimme maita, jotka ovat joko sosiaaliturvajärjestelmän kannalta verraten samankaltaisia Suomen kanssa (Ruotsi, Norja, Tanska, Islanti) ja/tai joissa vuoroasuminen on tutkimusten mukaan melko yleistä tai vuoroasumisesta on jonkinasteista lainsäädäntöä (Ranska, Belgia, Australia, Uusi-Seelanti, Iso-Britannia ja Yhdysvallat (Wisconsin)). Vertailu osoitti, että maiden välillä on eroja siinä, onko vuoroasumista huomioitu sosiaalitur-vaetuuksissa. Tanskassa ja Isossa-Britanniassa lapsen vuoroasumista ei ole huomioitu tarkas-telemiemme etuuksien kohdalla. Suomessa vain toimeentulotuessa on ohjeistusta vuoroasumisen huomioimisesta, Islannissa ja Yhdysvalloissa asumistuessa sekä Uudessa-Seelannissa lapsilisää vastaavassa veroetuudessa. Yleisimmin vuoroasuminen on otettu huomioon asumistuessa ja lapsilisässä. Etuuksia on vuoroasumisen näkökulmasta kehitetty kattavimmin Ruotsissa. Tulokset osoittivat, että vuoroasumisen huomioiminen keskeisissä perhepoliittisissa etuuksissa ei ole kovin systemaattista.Toinen, korjattu painosnonPeerReviewedVertaisarvioimato