1. Worst-Off: single-parent families in the US
Policy and Poverty in 45 Countries
Laurie C. Maldonado
Stone Center on Socio-Economic Inequality
Graduate Center, City University of New York

2. Key Message:
Focus is on single-parent families and coupled-parent families, and policies and poverty associations in 45 countries
Impact of taxes and transfers on reducing poverty.
Atkinson’s “Inequality: what can be done”, advocating for “the importance of measures to render less unequal the incomes people receive before government taxes and transfers” (2015, p. 113)
Therefore, this study examined not only redistribution but also work-family policies that perhaps render the work place more equal for families with children.

3. Data Micro level data at person and household level
Luxembourg Income Study Database
Micro level data at person and household level
45 countries, most recent dataset ( )
373,032 Households with Children
Single-parent households and coupled-parent households
Poverty: 50% median equivalized disposable household income
Redistribution & Family Transfers
Policy Associations: The World Policy Analysis Center
Family Benefit Design
Paid maternity leave
Leave for both parents
Paid annual leave
Guaranteed hours of rest
Leave for sick/ Leave for sick child

4. Method Comparing Income Pre/Post taxes and transfers
emphasis on family transfer
Poverty and Policy Associations
Family policies

7. Redistribution of taxes and transfers plays an important role for single-parent families

8. Family Transfers are particularly effective

9. Going Global: Family Benefit Scheme
The WORLD Policy Analysis Center

10. Family benefit design

11. Going Global: Paid Leave for New Mothers
Australia 2013
The WORLD Policy Analysis Center

12. Maternity Leave

13. Going Global: Paid Leave for Both Parents
Australia, Papua New Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, United States
The WORLD Policy Analysis Center

14. Leave for both parents

15. Guaranteed hours of rest from work week
Going Global: Working time regulations
Guaranteed hours of rest from work week
Paid annual leave
The WORLD Policy Analysis Center

16. Rest leave

17. Annual Leave

18. Sick Leave

19. Leave to care for sick child

20. Results
Using data from LIS and The World Policy Analysis Center to tell a comparative story for single-parent families
Policies matter and are important
Redistribution, in particular family transfers, are VERY important part of the package to reduce poverty, along with employment
Family Policies are associated with lower poverty for single parents (leave for mothers that is not too long + combined with leave for fathers)

21. Limitations Defining single-parent families Data limitations
Associations
for future research: how best to empirically consider a diverse set of countries

22. Conclusions
The United States is clearly lagging behind countries in terms of policies that support single parents and their families. The US has inadequate or missing policy in several areas that are consequential to reducing single parent poverty– low income transfers, no child benefit, no paid maternity leave, no paid leave for both parents, no paid sick leave for children, and limited working time regulations.
Certainly, lessons from the Triple Bind of Single-Parent Families, a recently edited book by Nieuwenhuis and Maldonado (2018), apply to the US. The idea to reduce gender inequality and reduce class inequality are effective strategies to support the wellbeing of single-parent families.

24. Appendix

25. Multilevel regression

26. Socio-demographic characteristics B SE
education ** 0.01
age ** 0.00
children > 5 years ** 0.01
single parent ** 0.44
Employment ** 0.02
Mom Leave
no paid leave (ref)
< 14 wks
wks
wks
> 52 wks
Single parent*mom leave
< 14 wks ** 0.52
wks ** 0.53
wks ** 0.55
> 52 wks ** 0.56
Leave for both parents
no leave (ref)
leave, no incentives
< 3 weeks for dad
> 2 weeks for dad
bonus for dad/ long leave
Single parent*leave for both parents
leave, no incentives
< 3 weeks for dad
> 2 weeks for dad
bonus for dad/ long leave ** 0.29
Working time regulations
rest leave ** 0.01
Single parent*rest leave ** 0.01
annual leave
Single parent*annual leave
Intercept ** 0.49
Country-level variance
Single Parent variance