Occupational autonomy, paid maternity leave, and mothers' return to work after childbirth

Abstract Objective This study formulates and tests a resource substitution hypothesis, examining whether mothers rely more on occupational autonomy to balance work and childrearing when paid maternity leave is unavailable. Background The tension between working for pay and caring for young children is crucial to understanding women's employment trajectories, especially in the United States, with its limited formal support for mothers around childbirth. In this context, occupational characteristics such as autonomy may serve as an important resource for working women to draw upon during the transition to motherhood. Method Using data from the first 19 rounds of the NLSY97 ( N = 1813) and the O*NET, the author estimates logistic models and discrete‐time event history models to consider the relationship between occupational autonomy, use of paid leave, and whether and when mothers come back to work after childbirth. Results The results highlight the nature of autonomy as a valuable resource in the transition back to work and confirm the resource substitution hypothesis. Mothers in occupations with greater autonomy are not only more likely to return to work after childbirth but also do so more promptly, particularly in the absence of paid leave. Conclusion These findings are significant, given the enduring impact of post‐childbirth career breaks and the limited access to paid leave in the United States. They underscore the potential of occupational autonomy in mitigating the adverse effects of motherhood on career progression and in reducing disparities among mothers across various labor market sectors.