Parental leave and return to work: evidence from

Growing Up in New Zealand

Assoc. Prof. Susan Morton

Director

Centre for Longitudinal Research – He Ara ki Mua

and Growing Up in New Zealand

University of Auckland

New Zealand

www.growingup.co.nz

Purpose of Growing Up in New Zealand

To provide contemporary population relevant

evidence about the determinants of

developmental trajectories for 21st century New

Zealand children in the context of their families.

“The Ministry of Social Development and the Health

Research Council of New Zealand, in association

with the Families Commission, the Ministries of

Health and Education and the Treasury, wish to

establish a new longitudinal study of New Zealand

children and families, …. to gain a better

understanding of the causal pathways that lead to

particular child outcomes (across the life course)”

…… introduction to RFP in 2004.

Introducing Growing Up in New Zealand

• Providing contemporary and holistic evidence about

growing up in New Zealand in the 21st century

• Following 6844 children born in 2009 and 2010 (and

their families) from before birth until early adulthood

• Cohort reflects diversity of all current NZ births

(ethnicity, SES, rural/urban)

• In particular Maori, Pacific and Asian children

included in appropriate numbers (unique)

• Collecting multidisciplinary evidence to inform

effective cross-sectoral solutions

Information collected to date

NEXT STEPS• 31 month retention contact complete and 45 month underway • Next DCW when children are 54 months (pre-schoolers)• DCWs planned every 2-3 years at key transition points thereafter• Data linkage to routinely collected health, education and other records

Multidisciplinary research framework

Domains of influence on children: not separate, but overlapping and interwoven.

Early information on child development

www.growingup.co.nz

Parental leave (Antenatal and by 9 months)

• Over 95% (n = 3534) of mothers in paid employment

during pregnancy intended to take any leave

• Slightly fewer (89%) partners intended to take leave after

their baby was born

• By the time the cohort babies were 9 months old over

83% (n=3085) of mothers who intended to take any leave

had done so (30% still on leave at 9 months)

• Most common leave taken was Paid Parental Leave (87%)

• 1056 mothers took only Paid Parental Leave

• 37.5% took 2 forms of leave, 21% took 3 or more types

(unpaid, annual, sick leave)

Parental leave intentions (antenatal)

NZDep2006 quintiles n Anticipated leave (months)

Preferred leave (months)

NZDep 1-2 (least deprived) 1100 9.4 17.9

NZDep 3-4 1235 8.6 16.3

NZDep 5-6 1168 7.9 16.7

NZDep 7-8 1426 8.2 16.9

NZDep 9-10 1891 7.2 14.7

Household income groups

<=20K 220 7.2 9.9

>20K <=30K 292 8.6 16.5

>30K <=50K 738 8.0 12.9

>50K <=70K 860 7.8 15.3

>70K <=100K 1198 7.8 17.2

>100K <=150K 915 8.2 17.1

>150K 986 9.1 18.0

Length of leave (by 9 months)

Length of leave for those who had completed leave (n=2460)* Mean (weeks)

Length of total leave (both paid and unpaid) 23.2

Length of paid parental leave plus additional pay from employer 14.8

Length of paid parental leave only 13.6

Length of annual leave 4.5

Length of receiving other type of pay 10.3

Length of not receiving any pay at all 16.0

* Includes multiple response(s) and will total to more than 100%

Paid Parental leave and type of child care (9 months)

Main child care at 9 months(for mothers who took PPL)

n %

Daycare or Early childcare Centre 488 40

Grandparent 378 31

Home based care programme 126 10

Nanny 92 8

Other relative 58 5

Other (friend, neighbour) 31 3

Kohanga Reo 23 2

Pacific islands Childcare Centre 14 1

Other 10 0.9

Child wellbeing - Immunisation rates by deprivation

Parental Leave (type and duration) and likelihood of timely Immunisations

• Completion of immunisations on time was most likely for the group of children whose mothers were still on leave when they were 9 months of age (n=1055)

(6 weeks – 94%, 3mths - 93%, 5mths – 88% or all 3 -86%)

• Completion of immunisations on time was also most likely for the group of children whose mothers took a combination of Paid Parental leave and Other leave

(6 weeks – 94%, 3mths - 93%, 5mths – 89% or all 3 -87%)

• Completion of immunisations on time was least likely for the group of children whose mothers took only Other leave (that is no PPL)

(6 weeks – 89%, 3mths - 86%, 5mths – 77% or all 3 -75%)

Exclusive Breastfeeding Rates in Growing Up

Parental leave and exclusive breastfeeding

Duration of exclusive breastfeeding (months)

Maternal leave group

N+ Minimum Maximum Mean Std Dev Median

Took leave 3420 0.033 11.000 3.816 2.112 4.000

Didn't take leave 664 0.033 9.000 3.892 2.105 4.000

Not eligible for leave (not working)

2022 0.033 12.000 3.890 2.178 4.000

+Of those in each category that ever breastfed

Parental leave type and exclusive breastfeeding

+Of those in each category that ever breastfed

Duration of exclusive breastfeeding (months)

Maternal leave group

N+ Minimum Maximum Mean Std Dev Median

Paid parental leave

1015 0.033 9.000 3.792 2.123 4.000

Paid parental leave plus other

leave(s)

1976 0.033 11.000 3.834 2.102 4.000

Other leave type(s) but not

paid parental leave

425 0.033 9.000 3.773 2.135 4.000

Future plans

• Full analysis of parental leave and return to work when all mothers have completed leave (approximately 30% of those who took leave yet to return to work in first 9 months)

• Further analyses of enablers and barriers to taking parental leave (for those eligible)

• Further analyses on impact of parental leave on environment provided for children and related behaviours

• Relationship between parental leave and return to work on family dynamics and child developmental outcomes and wellbeing.

Acknowledgements

• Participants and their families

• Growing Up team

• University of Auckland

• UniServices

• Ministry of Social Development

• Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Justice, Dept of Labour, Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs, Te Puni Kokiri, Office of Ethnic Affairs, Statistics NZ, Families Commission, Children’s Commission

• Advisory and Stakeholder groups