# Mothers' pay still drops by a third after a first child

> Working women who had a first child in 2016–2018 earned 33% less from work six years later, against 3% less for fathers, according to the new Emancipatiemonitor from Statistics Netherlands (CBS).

Society · published 2026-11-13 06:00 · https://nlnow.nl/a/mothers-income-still-drops-a-third-after-a-first-child/

Women in work who had their first child between 2016 and 2018 were paid 33% less six years after the birth than in the year before they became mothers. For fathers the so-called "child penalty" (babyboete) is 3%. The figures come from the Emancipatiemonitor 2026, published today by Statistics Netherlands (CBS).

The penalty for mothers has shrunk. Women who had their first child twenty years earlier saw their pay fall by 57%. CBS says mothers have on average started working more hours since then.

**The income drop for new mothers has shrunk with each cohort** (% change in income from work, six years after first birth vs one year before; source: CBS)

- 1996–2001: -57.4
- 2002–2007: -49
- 2008–2010: -43
- 2011–2013: -37.2
- 2014–2016: -35
- 2016–2018: -32.8

## Wishes and practice differ

Two thirds of both women and men in an opposite-sex couple with a child under 18 would like to share childcare equally. Only 2% want the man to do more than the woman. In practice, both partners do the same amount in 40% of such couples, and more than half say the woman does more.

Most people think men and women are equally suited to caring for children: 55% of men and 67% of women. Among men, 41% think women are better suited, as do 29% of women. Almost nobody thinks men are better suited.

Working hours show the same gap. Asked about fathers of a child under 4, 67% of women and 57% of men think 20 to 35 hours a week is best. In practice only 20% of these fathers work that many hours, while 75% of all fathers of a child under 4 work full-time.

Asked about mothers of a child under 4, 26% of women and 30% of men think working part-time for up to 20 hours a week is best. In 2025 only 9% of these mothers worked so few hours. More mothers work full-time or not at all than people think is ideal.

## Background

- **CBS (Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek)**: Statistics Netherlands, the independent government body that produces the official statistics on the Dutch economy and society.

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