Summary and discussion

Abstract

Economic and social pressures to be gainfully employed have increased during the last several decades, forcing women and mothers to enter the labor market. Moreover, women today are better educated, and their work-life preferences have evolved toward a stronger labor-market orientation, increasing their labor-market attachment (Daly and Klammer 2006; Lewis et al. 2008a; Sjöberg 2010; Esping-Andersen 1999). Not least, an overall rise in employment participation of both men and women is seen as crucial for the viability of the welfare state and economic prosperity as well as for the enhancement of social cohesion and inclusion. Policies enabling parents and mothers to combine work and family life are therefore regarded as the most appropriate to meet families’ current needs and preferences for earning a living and caring for dependent children.