Gender inequality in the labor market: The role of flexible jobs

When analysing household behaviour, economists have traditionally relied on the ‘unitary’ model, where the household is assumed to maximize a unique utility function. However, it is by now well understood that, when applied to couples, the unitary approach fails when brought to the data. This has led to the development of what is now known as the ‘collective’ model. The collective model acknowledges that the household is a collective of individuals, each with their own preferences, taking Pareto-efficient decisions resulting from an intrahousehold bargaining process. Since its introduction, the model has been extended in multiple ways; yet there are still numerous extensions possible. The main goal (of my PhD thesis) is to introduce job amenities – such as work flexibility – in a collective setting and analyse the effects on each spouse’s time allocation and their relative bargaining power within the household (as amenities affect wages). From a policy perspective this is particularly interesting as the household context is important and related labour market policies might have unintended consequences.