Some due relief of a heavy burden : the effect of an Argentinian childcare program on mothers' labor supply

Abstract

This study aims to identify the causal effects of an Argentinian childcare program on mothers' labor market outcomes. In 2009, the government of the City of Buenos Aires launched a program, through which it created childcare centers for vulnerable children up to 3 years. Its main purpose was to ensure the healthy growth and development of the most unprotected children in the city. Since 2009, 76 centers have been opened throughout the city, most of which are located in the southern neighborhoods, where the most vulnerable families live. In this study, I use a regression discontinuity design to estimate the causal effects of the program by exploding the discontinuity in the elegibility for the program. My results show that being potentially eligible for the program increases the mother's probability of belonging to the workforce by 9.67 percentage points and the probability of being employed by 12.9 percentage points, when the quantity of current operating childcare centers in the \textit{comuna} where the mother lives is between 2 and 7. These effects are both statistically and economically significant. This study provides valuable insights into the effectiveness of childcare programs in promoting women's labor market participation and highlights the need for policies that address the issue of access to childcare services.