Study: Womens raises keep the birthrate down
Reported December 13, 2008
If a womans salary goes up, she is less likely to have children, while a mans salary increase has the opposite effect, according to a report by the Korea Development Institution.
A report by researcher Kim Jeong-ho released yesterday found that if a womans salary goes up by 10 percent, the probability of her having a first child goes down by 2.5 percent.
For women who already have one child, a 10 percent raise lowers the probability of them having a second child by 2.7 percent.
Between 1980 to 2005, a salary rise was cited as the main factor preventing a woman from having a second child, Kim said.
But if a mans salary goes up by 10 percent the chances of him having a second child goes up 3.2 percent.
This research was based on nationwide birthrate data from 2006 on 6,632 married women.
A forum on the low birthrate, organized by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, took place yesterday.
Instead of the government having a specific number concerning raising the birthrate, it should execute policies to help couples start families in a stable environment, Kim said.