Abstract
We study how gender norms shape the allocation of work within households and in the labor market when employers cannot observe couples’ preferences over the division of childcare. We build a model in which imperfect information can generate inefficient pooling equilibria, with egalitarian couples adopting traditional divisions of labor despite their preferences. Gender-based policies can help break these equilibria by allowing couples to credibly signal their preferences to employers. We investigate this mechanism using parental leave reforms in Sweden and the UK. Following Sweden’s 1995 introduction of a paternal leave quota, couples in which fathers take leave (slightly) beyond the quota experience smaller gender earnings gaps than couples in which fathers take less than the quota. These effects are driven by a combination of higher maternal and lower paternal earnings. These patterns are consistent with a signalling mechanism rather than differences in actual labor market experience. Suggestive evidence from the UK’s shared parental leave reform supports this interpretation.

About the Speaker
Barbara Petrongolo is a Professor of Economics at the University of Oxford and a Professorial Fellow at Nuffield College. She is Director of the CEPR Labour Economics Programme and Research Associate at the Centre for Economic Performance of the London School of Economics. She previously held positions at Queen Mary University of London, the London School of Economics, the Paris School of Economics and the University of Carlos III (Madrid). She is currently managing co-editor of the Economic Journal. Her primary research interests are in labour economics. She has worked extensively on the performance of labour markets with job search frictions, with applications to unemployment dynamics, welfare policy and interdependencies across local labour markets. Her work also researches the causes of gender inequalities in labour market outcomes, in a historical perspective and across countries, with emphasis on the role of employment selection mechanisms, structural transformation, and interactions within the household. In August 2024, Barbara was appointed Chair of the Joint Appointment Committee.