PARADOX OF WORKING AND BECOMING A PARENT. INTRODUCTORY THOUGHTS (A munkavallalas es gyermekvallalas paradoxona. Bevezeto gondolatok)

In recent decades, studies focused on how the (female) employment rate and willingness of becoming parents could be increased in welfare states. This paper outlines the matter of features characterizing the relationship of these two aspects. The main question is which factors influence if employment and fertility rates strengthen or weaken each other. This introduction argues for the correlation of the developments on these two areas according to the results of recent researches: high employment rate - high fertility rate; low employment rate - low fertility rate. On which part of the scale a society can be found, is influenced by various factors, such as: whether the welfare system supports the expansion of high quality child care institutions for children up to the age of 3; how long it alienates young mothers from the labor market (including even on the level of expectations or norms); and how well-balanced the division of tasks is at home between the partners (e.g. the importance of the active role of fathers). Finally, the study outlines some arguments aiming that the increasing equalization and parallel expansion of female employment can be considered as important factors contributing to economic development and social integration.