DUAL TRACKS: PART-TIME WORK IN LIFE-CYCLEEMPLOYMENT FOR BRITISIH WOMEN

Almost half the women in work in the UK work part-time, but views conflict: does this support awoman’s career or is it a dead-end trap?Cohort data on labour market involvement to age 42 show highly varied pathways throughfull/part-time/non-employment. Econometric estimation confirms that individual characteristicsmatter, but labour market history is particularly powerful. Part-time work serves two differentfunctions. A history of full-time work even including spells in part-time or non-employment,tends to lead back to full-time work, so supporting a career. Part-time work combined with nonemploymentis unlikely to lead to full-time work, and is a trap....