Why Did Employment and Earnings Rise Among Lone Mothers During the 1980s and 1990s?
by John Myles, Feng Hou, Garnett Picot and Karen Myers
Business and Labour Market Analysis Division
Analytical Studies Branch Research Paper Series, No. 282
Context
Rising female employment has been a defining feature of all contemporary labour markets, and employment rates of lone mothers have been no exception to this trend. Employment rates and average earnings among Canadian lone mothers rose between 1980 and 2000. As a result, their low-income rate declined. However, in comparison with married mothers, these gains were modest.
Objective(s)
This research paper examines reasons behind the rises observed in lone mothers employment and earnings during the 1980s and 1990s.
Findings
Employment rates and earnings among single mothers improved significantly after 1980, and by 2000, low-income rates reached new historic lows. Unlike married mothers, most of the gains among lone mothers were the result of the dynamics of population change and cohort replacement as the large and better educated baby boom generation replaced earlier cohorts and began entering their forties. Most of these gains, moreover, went to older lone mothers. The demographically driven gains of lone mothers in the past quarter century were an historical event unlikely to be repeated in the future. Since the demographic drivers underlying these gains are now nearing maturity, future gains from this source are likely to be modest.
Data source(s)
This study uses the data from the 1981, 1991 and 2001 Censuses of Canada.
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