Page 11 - IDEA Study 4 2017 Public financing for pre-school places

Table 2: Characteristics of families with children aged 3-5 and the mothers’
return to work

Family type 1: Non-working mother, at least one child aged 3-5 NOT attending a
pre-school facility, no sibling under 3 years of age

Number of children aged 3-5 in such families 36,296

Average number of children aged 3-5 per family 1.12

Number of stay-at-home mothers caring for a child, per one child 0.89

Total number of stay-at-home mothers 32,272

Family type 2: Non-working mother, at least one child aged 3-5 NOT attending a
pre-school facility, at least one sibling under 3 years of age

Number of children aged 3-5 in such families 28,786

Total 49.6 %

Probability that the mother will start working if her child aged 3-5 is admitted to a
pre-school facility

Source: SILC 2013 survey by the Czech Statistical Office, authors’ own calculations

In Type 1 families, 89 percent of mothers would return to work if one additional child was
placed in a pre-school facility. This figure stems from the fact that there is an average
number of 1.12 children aged 3-5 per one such family, and they would all have to start
attending pre-school for their mother to return to work. Our calculations also work with
the assumption that every mother who wants to work will find a job; this is a fairly
realistic assumption due to the employers’ obligation to re-hire women after parental
leave within 3 years of the child’s age. We also assume that women who seek to place their
child in a pre-school facility do so for the very purpose of returning to work; however, we
have not factored this assumption into the sensitivity analysis.

Based on a 2013 SILC representative survey12, the total number of children in Type 1
families (aged 3-5, not attending pre-school, no siblings under the age of 3) was
approximately 36,000. Placing all of those children in pre-school facilities would mean
that approximately 32,000 women could return to work. The total number of children
aged 3-5 in Type 2 families (aged 3-5, not attending pre-school, with siblings under
the age of 3) was approximately 29,000. We assume that placing those children in pre-
school facilities would not result in their mothers’ return to work.

12 Data gathered during a selective survey conducted by the Czech Statistical Office (SILC – Survey of
Income and Living Conditions).

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