The Glass Is Half Full: The Safety Net for Low-Income Women Around Childbirth

Highlights

Employed, social welfare–connected mothers experience a substantial reduction in earnings around a child's birth. Social welfare programs, assuming full take-up, can offset these lost earnings after birth but not during pregnancy. Most social welfare benefits available around birth are nutrition assistance, which are not fungible. These mothers spend about six months out of the labor force, with Black mothers returning earlier, on average.