Entering and continuing labor force participation: Taiwanese women, marriage, and work.

Abstract

This study examines the changing labor force participation pattern at marriage for women in Taiwanese society. The probability of labor force participation after marriage is examined using a logistic regression model. The data are derived from the 1978 Young Women KAP Follow-up Survey. This study provides evidence to support the notion that marriage is one of the life events which disrupt women's employment. The literature shows that the disruptive effect is mainly attributed to the incompatibility between familial and career roles. Our findings suggest that long-distance migration in the first year of marriage is also a source of disruption. The results show that labor force participation prior to marriage is the most significant determinant of labor force participation after marriage. Moreover, the results also suggest that the decision-making process of labor force participation after marriage differs greatly among women with different premarital employment status. The decision to enter the labor force after marriage is strongly affected by both job opportunities and family resources. The decision to continue working after marriage, however, appears to have a different pattern. Education and marriage-induced migration are the two most important determinants of continuing labor force participation after marriage. The difficulties associated with commuting to a premarital job or relocating a job after migrating to a new area is negatively related continuing labor force participation after marriage. The disruptive effect of migration on continuing labor force participation after marriage depends on women's education. The incompatibility between career and the familial role is also negatively related to continuing labor force participation after marriage. Family-based job opportunities or jobs in the local labor market facilitate continuing labor force participation after marriage. This evidence suggests that the labor force participation of married women in Taiwan will increase with the growing trend of neolocal postmarital residence pattern and with the expansion of industrialization in the rural areas.