Secure Parental Employment
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Headline

Among children living with single mothers, the percent whose mother was employed full-time declined slightly from 50 percent in 2002 to 48 percent in 2005. This decline came after the percentage had increased substantially from 39 percent in 1996 (the year in which welfare reform was first implemented) to 50 percent in 2002. (See Figure 1)

Importance

Secure attachment to the labor force, defined here as full-time, full-year employment, is a major determinant of financial stability and well-being for families. For low-income families, it is not a guarantee of escape from poverty¹ but it is associated with higher family income and greater access to private health insurance. Higher income, in turn, is associated with many positive child outcomes including better health, academic achievement, and financial well-being as adults.² However, in some cases, long hours of employment among mothers of very young children have been associated with modestly negative development outcomes.³

Trends

The percentage of children with at least one resident parent employed full-time, full-year increased steadily, from 72 percent in 1990 to 80 percent in 2000, before gradually decreasing after 2000. Increases during the 1990 to 2000 period were particularly large for children in families headed by single parents, non-Hispanic black children, and children in poor families. (See Figure 1 and Table 1) Since the year 2000, the percentage of children with at least one parent employed full time has decreased to 78 percent in 2005.( Table 1)

Differences by Family Structure

Children who live with two parents are much more likely than children who live only with their mother or their father to have at least one parent employed full-time, full-year (89 percent among children living with two parents, compared with 48 percent of children living with single mothers and 71 percent of children living with single fathers, in 2005). (See Figure 2)

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Differences by Poverty Status

In 2005, among children living below the poverty line, only one out of three children had at least one parent in the household employed full-time, full-year, compared with nearly seven out of eight children at or above the poverty line (32 percent versus 88 percent). Among children in poverty, 57 percent of those children living in two-parent families had at least one parent employed full-time, full-year, compared with 17 percent of children living in mother-only families and 32 percent of children living in father-only families, in 2005. (See Figure 3)

Differences by Race and Ethnicity

In 2005, non-Hispanic white children were more likely than Hispanic children to have at least one parent employed full-time, full-year (84 percent versus 74 percent, respectively). At 62 percent, non-Hispanic black children were less likely than either non-Hispanic white or Hispanic children to have at least one parent with secure employment. (Table 1)

Differences by Age

Older children are more likely than younger children to have at least one parent employed full-time, full-year. Among children living in single-mother families in 2005, only 37 percent of children under age six lived with at least one parent employed full-time, full-year, compared with 53 percent of children ages six to 17. (Table 1) Among children living in two-parent households, the percentage of children living with at least one parent employed full-time, full-year also varies by age, although the differences are much less striking (87 percent and 90 percent, respectively).

Related Indicators

Health Care Coverage, Children in Poverty, Long-Term Poverty

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State and Local Estimates

State-level estimates for the percent of children under age six with both parents in the labor force for 2006 are available from the 2007 KIDS COUNT Data Book at: http://www.kidscount.org/sld/index.jsp (See state data)

State-level estimates for the percent of children who do not have at least one parent employed full-time, full-year (the obverse of this indicator) are available from 2000-2005 from the KIDS COUNT Data Book at: http://www.kidscount.org/sld/index.jsp (See state data)

State and region estimates for parental employment by family structure for 1990 and 2000 are available from a Census Bureau publication available at: http://www.census.gov/population/www/documentation/twps0078/twps0078.pdf (See Tables E.3 and E.4)

International Estimates

None

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National Goals

None

What Works: Programs and Interventions that May Influence this Indicator

Click here to view examples of programs and interventions that research has evaluated for this indicator. View programs

Research References

¹Cauthen, Nancy. 2002. Policies that improve family income matter to children. National Center for Children in Poverty. http://www.nccp.org/publications/pub_480.html

²Brooks-Gunn, J., and Duncan, G. 1997. The Effects of poverty on children. The Future of Children. 7(2), pp. 55-71. http://www.futureofchildren.org/information2826/information_show.htm?doc_id=72165

³Harvey, E. 1999. Short-term and long-term effects of early parental employment on children in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. Developmental Psychology. 35, 2 pp.445-459. This article may be purchased at: http://www.psycinfo.com/psycarticles/1999-10060-012.html

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Definition

A parent is defined as securely employed if he or she was usually working full-time (at least 35 hours per week) for 50 or more weeks in the most recent calendar year.

Data Source

Data for 2005: Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics. America's Children in Brief: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2007, Table ECON2. Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. http://www.childstats.gov/americaschildren/tables.asp

Data for 2004: Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics. America's Children in Brief: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2006, Table ECON2. Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. http://www.childstats.gov/americaschildren/tables.asp

Data for 2002-2003: Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics. America's Children in Brief: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2005, Table ECON2. Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. http://childstats.gov/americaschildren/eco2.asp

Data for 1980-2001: Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics. America's Children in Brief: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2004, Table ECON2. Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. http://childstats.gov/americaschildren/pdf/ac2004/econ.pdf

Raw Data Source

Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement (formerly known as the March Supplement) http://www.bls.census.gov/cps/ads/adsmain.htm

Approximate Date of Next Update

Summer 2008

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