The Effect of Marriage and Children on the Earnings of Canadian-born and Immigrant Women

Abstract

This paper studies the effects of marriage and of the presence of children in the family on the earnings of native-born and immigrant women by using data collected from the 2016 Canadian Census of Population. The effects on earnings of immigrant women from different countries of origin are estimated separately. The results suggest that there is a difference between native-born and immigrant women regarding the effect of marriage on earnings. For native-born women, there is a positive marriage wage premium, but there is a negative marriage wage penalty for immigrant women, especially those who come from developing countries. The results are consistent with the family investment model where married immigrant women tend to work as secondary workers in the family in order to invest into their husbands’ careers and fulfill family responsibilities. Regarding the effect of children, the empirical results show that, for both native-born women and immigrant women, there is a large wage penalty from having preschool children at home.