First-time mothers work and safety net participation around birth

• In Event: Poverty, Policy, and Economic Supports in Early Childhood

Abstract

The transition to parenthood imposes new demands for food and care, pushing families with low incomes into economic insecurity. Income declines and poverty risks increase as mothers exit work due to lack of access to paid leave (Hamilton et al., 2023; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2021). Understanding how mothers navigate work and safety nets around childbirth is crucial for future work-family and safety net policies.

Previous research has highlighted gender and racial/ethnic disparities in economic instability post-birth (Heflin & Morissey, 2022). This study aims to describe patterns of work and safety net participation before and after childbirth using longitudinal population data. It provides new insights into the timing, duration, and transitions in employment, TANF, and SNAP participation during this critical family life course transition.

Methods

The study utilized administrative data from health and social services in Oregon, focusing on births between 2016 and 2017. Birth records were linked to employment, SNAP, and TANF participation from 24 months before to 24 months after birth, covering 2014 to 2019. Descriptive analyses examined work and safety net participation at quarterly intervals. Sequence analysis (Aisenbrey & Fasang, 2010) assessed the full trajectories of work and safety net participation. Dissimilarity matrices were produced using optimal matching, and clustering was performed using k-medoid methods. Multivariate regression identified characteristics associated with various work and safety net clusters.

Results

Among low-income mothers, most were working or combining work with SNAP and TANF before and after birth. Safety net participation expanded significantly just before and within six months following birth, with many new mothers enrolling in TANF and SNAP. Almost all mothers engaged in TANF were also on SNAP post-birth.

Two years after birth, employment rates returned to pre-birth levels. The expanded safety net and work participation at two years were primarily due to increased TANF use, while SNAP use remained stable.

Sequence analyses using k-medoids and ASW goodness of fit revealed a five-cluster solution: (1) mostly work, (2) mostly unattached, (3) safety net only, (4) work and safety net, and (5) unattached to safety net. Mothers in the mostly work cluster were older and more educated compared to other low-income mothers. Age and race/ethnicity had weak associations with cluster membership. Marital status and prenatal employment were strongly associated with cluster membership: cluster 2 (mostly unattached) was more likely to be married at birth; cluster 1 (mostly work) had higher likelihood of full prenatal employment.

Conclusions

This study examines work and safety net participation by linking population-level data of quarterly work and safety net enrollment two years before and after first-time birth. The granularity reveals that most low-income mothers rely on the safety net (predominantly SNAP), with a significant spike in participation shortly after birth. As states consider policies to support the economic security of new mothers, it remains to be seen whether state paid family leave policies will mitigate the departure from work and increase in safety net use around childbirth.

Authors

• Colleen M Heflin, Syracuse University
  Presenting Author

• David Rothwell, Oregon State University
  Non-Presenting Co-Author