ItemConference Paper

Rewarding Fathers, Penalizing Mothers - A Quantitative Evidence on the Unequal Gains of Parents in Indian Labor Market

Title
Rewarding Fathers, Penalizing Mothers - A Quantitative Evidence on the Unequal Gains of Parents in Indian Labor Market
Creator
Sensharma, Ayushi; Sharma, Ashish; Agrawal, Swati
Description
The gender discrimination is a significant issue in the labor market. Motherhood Penalty is one of the important contributors to this issue. This study aims to find the evidence of impact of parenthood on employment to population ratio and mean nominal monthly earnings concerning factors household structure and number of children under age six. Using interactive multiple linear regression models, we have derived meaningful conclusions from data collected from the International Labor Organization (ILO). Our findings reveal that there is a significant motherhood penalty in India. Womens employment probability decreases by 12.4% with one child and up to 19.09% with three or more children. Meanwhile, men experience a fatherhood bonus, with employment rates rising by up to 24.79% as they have more children. Wage disparities are also evidentmothers with two or more children earn substantially less than childless women, whereas the fatherhood wage premium is weaker than in developed economies. Mothers with two or more children earn substantially less than childless women, whereas the fatherhood wage premium is weaker than in developed economies. Through this study, we also see the probable reasons behind the results observed from the models. Lack of institutional support for working moms, workplace prejudice, and deeply rooted gender stereotypes are some of the main reasons attributing to the Motherhood Penalty. This disparity is further exacerbated by strict work rules, poor childcare facilities, and lax paternity leave regulations. Overall, the motherhood penalty is a serious phenomenon affecting the lives of many mothers and degrading their standards of living. The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2026.
Source
Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems;Volume;1655 LNNS;pp.396-405
Date
01-01-2026
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH
Subject
Employment to Population Ratio; Fatherhood Bonus; Gender discrimination; Mean nominal monthly wages; Motherhood penalty
Coverage
Sensharma A., School of Sciences, CHRIST University, Bangalore, India; Sharma A., School of Sciences, CHRIST University, Bangalore, India; Agrawal S., School of Sciences, CHRIST University, Bangalore, India
Rights
Restricted Access; Hardcopy may be available in the library
Relation
ISSN: 23673370; ISBN: 978-303206699-2;
Format
online
Language
English
Type
Conference paper

Citation

Sensharma, Ayushi; Sharma, Ashish; Agrawal, Swati, “Rewarding Fathers, Penalizing Mothers - A Quantitative Evidence on the Unequal Gains of Parents in Indian Labor Market,” CHRIST (Deemed To Be University) Institutional Repository, accessed June 18, 2026, https://archives.christuniversity.in/items/show/25362.

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