Network shelter or network trap? The use of social ties and the motherhood wage penalty in China’s labour market

Both supply-side and demand-side factors are studied to explain heterogeneity in the motherhood wage penalty. Yet, how job attainment pathways mitigate or exacerbate the motherhood wage penalty is less known. Taking the case of the Chinese labour market, where social ties are frequently used for job attainment, this study examines how the motherhood wage penalty is moderated by different social tie use strategies. Employing panel data from the China Labor-force Dynamics Survey and fixed-effects regression models, the study finds that the use of social ties in job attainment exacerbates the motherhood wage penalty. Social tie users experience a significant motherhood wage loss, whether strong ties or weak ties, whereas non-social tie users encounter fewer penalties. Robustness checks show the validity of the findings, indicating that Chinese mothers are doubly trapped in the networked labour market.