Childcare and parental work schedules: a comparison of childcare arrangements among Finnish, British and Dutch dual-earner families
Abstract
This study examined the association between parental work schedules and non-parental childcare
arrangements among dual-earner families in Finland, the Netherlands and the UK. Data from the
‘Families 24/7’ web-survey were used, including 937 parents with children aged 0-12 years.
Results showed a negative association between non-standard work and formal childcare
across all countries. A similar association was found for using a combination of formal and
informal childcare, whereas solely using informal childcare was not associated with work
characteristics. Country differences showed that, compared with Finland, the probability of using
formal childcare was lower in the Netherlands, whereas the probability of using informal
childcare was higher in the UK. Interaction effects showed that the negative association between
non-standard work and formal childcare was stronger in the Netherlands, compared with Finland.
Also, the positive association between working hours and formal childcare was weaker for Dutch
and British parents.
This study identified the challenges that parents face when arranging childcare outside of
office hours. Although the supply of formal childcare seems to be insufficient, using informal
childcare introduces other potential problems. Because a considerable proportion of employees
work non-standard hours, governments should help these parents in meeting their need for high
quality childcare.
Main Authors
Format
Articles
Research article
Published
2016
Series
Subjects
Publication in research information system
Publisher
Routledge
The permanent address of the publication
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:jyu-201812175163Use this for linking
Review status
Peer reviewed
ISSN
1366-8803
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1080/13668803.2015.1024609
Language
English
Published in
Community, Work and Family
Citation
- Verhoef, M., Tammelin, M., May, V., Rönkä, A., & Roeters, A. (2016). Childcare and parental work schedules: a comparison of childcare arrangements among Finnish, British and Dutch dual-earner families. Community, Work and Family, 19(3), 261-280. https://doi.org/10.1080/13668803.2015.1024609
Copyright© 2015 Taylor & Francis.