The Job Task Penalty for Motherhood

ABSTRACT Objective This study examines how childbirth affects women's job tasks. Background Motherhood remains a key source of gendered inequalities in the labor market. Yet little is known about how it reshapes women's work content, even though job tasks are critical for job quality, skill development, and long‐term career trajectories. Method Using panel data from the German National Educational Panel Study (2011–2020), we analyze within‐person changes in job tasks following childbirth among 1978 women, applying individual fixed‐effects models. Results After childbirth, mothers engage in fewer analytic, complex, and interactive tasks. These reductions are concentrated among those who decrease their working hours, while no differences emerge by occupational mobility or leave duration. Conclusion The findings support perspectives emphasizing work–family strain rather than explanations based on occupational mobility or length of leave. Implications By documenting task‐based motherhood penalties, this study highlights a critical yet often overlooked dimension of gendered labor market inequality. The results underscore the need for work–family policies and workplace practices that safeguard not only mothers' labor market participation but also their access to career‐enhancing tasks.