If you’re a new dad, congratulations! You have many things to look forward to and making more money is one you might not have expected. If you’re a new mom, well, you can expect to make less, according to a research study recently reported in the New York Times.
The research, which was conducted by University of Massachusetts, Amherst sociologist Michelle Budig, found that men who live with their children on average see their pay increase by 6%, while women with children on average see the pay drop 4% for each child they have. Budig based her study on the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth from 1979-2006.
“The gap persisted even after Ms. Budig controlled for factors like experience, education, hours worked, and spouse’s income,” the Times reported. She attributed a small part of the difference, 16%, to the fact that fathers work more after the birth of a child while mothers often cut back on their hours.
A separate study found that male job applicants with children stood a better chance of being called for an interview. Stanford University sociology professor Shelly J. Correll conducted the study, sending fake resumes to employers. The resumes were mostly identical except some mentioned membership in a parent-teacher association. Correll found that fathers were a bit more likely to be called for an interview than childless men were, while mothers were half as likely to be called as childless women. “A lot of these effects really are very much due to a cultural bias against mothers,” Correll told the NYT.
