Women’s labor market opportunities and equality in the household

We study how changes in couples’ relative wages affect the division of childcare. Using a nationwide wage reform that raised pay in the female-dominated teaching profession, we find that closing 25% of the earnings gap between female teachers and their male spouses led to a 12% reduction in the childcare time gap. This result holds when we extend the analysis to major pay raises for women at the population level. Data support the mechanism that women reduce their childcare time when the spouse can step in by working more from home. Policies that address female pay can foster household equality, if men have access to flexible work arrangements. • The article examines how the gender pay gap within couples influences the division of childcare time. • Leveraging a teacher pay reform, it finds that closing 25% of the gender earnings gap reduces the childcare time gap by 12%. • The findings generalize to occupations beyond the female-dominated teaching profession. • The effect is driven by couples where the male partner has a flexible job. • Policies addressing female pay can promote household equality.