Precarious work and the fertility intention-behavior link: An analysis based on the Swiss Household Panel data

The negative effect of economic uncertainty on people’s fertility decisions is well documented, yet most studies examine only structural factors, perceived work-related, and economic factors. We aim at extending the research in this field by including the role of precarious work (job insecurity, work control, and individuals’ financial situation) on the likelihood of positive fertility intentions. We use longitudinal data from the Swiss Household Panel (SHP 2002-2010) to run a set of multinomial logistic regression models of fertility intentions separately for men and women. We let socio-demographic characteristics mediate the effect of precarious work on fertility intentions in all models. Results indicate a gender-specific effect of work control on fertility intentions.