To Work or Not to Work— the Case of Women

Abstract

In countries such as West Germany and Italy, high levels of unemployment are being associated with severe and antagonistic forms of social aggression. While this does not appear to be the case at present within Australia, there are signs evident of social tensions and strains existing between population groups competing for employment opportunities. This paper investigates the decision of women to join the labour force and attempts to assess the validity of "popular" arguments that women should be discouraged from working in favour of the unemployed youth. The results of this investigation suggest that the labour force participation of females is positively associated with factors such as (1) family income, (2) the age and presence of dependent children and (3) the number of years of schooling. Married women enter the labour force for reasons other than "need" and attempts to increase the level of employment of one population group at the expense of another are likely to fail.