Keeping Child Care a Family Affair: Maternal Nonstandard Work Hours and Dual-Earner Couples' Child Care Arrangements

Peter D. Brandon, Carleton College

Using Australian time diary data, this study examined the effects of maternal nonstandard work hours on child care choice and utilization among dual-earner couples. Findings showed that increases in maternal nonstandard work hours reduced the odds of dual-earner couples choosing relative- or market-provided child care compared with parental-provided child care. And, increases in maternal nonstandard work hours decreased the odds of dual-earner parents utilizing more hours of relative- or market-provided child care each week if these types of child care were chosen. Results for control variables agreed with past findings in the literature. This study offers new knowledge on the link between mothers scheduled work hours and family-produced child care services. Key words: Nonstandard work hours, work-family balance, time diaries, child care.