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June 2008

The timing of mothers’ employment after childbirth

Elizabeth Washbrook, Jane Waldfogel, Christopher J. Ruhm, Wen-Jui Han

According to data from a new nationally representative study of women who gave birth in 2001, the speed of a woman's return to work after the birth of a child was influenced by many factors, including family structure, education, age, birth history, and race/ethnicity, but the strongest factor was whether or not the woman had been working prior to the birth.

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