Single Parents' Working Hours and Childcare Gaps: A Comparison Based on Income Level

Background/Purpose: Single-parent households in South Korea represent approximately 6.6% of all households, with about 1.493 million families as of 2023. These families face dual burdens of employment and childcare responsibilities, often leading to time poverty. Furthermore, long working hours can exacerbate childcare gaps, negatively impacting children’s academic performance and emotional stability. This study examines the relationship between working hours and childcare gaps among single-parent households, focusing on differences between low-income and non-low-income groups. Specifically, we hypothesize that low-income single parents experience longer working hours and more significant childcare gaps than their non-low-income counterparts.

Methods: Data were drawn from the 2021 Single-Parent Family Survey, conducted by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. The dataset includes 3,300 single-parent households with children under 18. This study focused on 915 employed single parents with elementary school-aged children. The independent variable, working hours, was measured based on respondents’ reported work hours per weekday. The dependent variable, childcare gap, was measured by the question: “How many hours per weekday does your elementary school-aged child spend without adult supervision?”. Low-income status was defined as receiving benefits under the National Basic Livelihood Security Act or Single-Parent Family Support Act. Control variables included gender, age, education attainment, household income, subjective health status, employment status, number of household members, presence of other children, and available support networks. Data were analyzed using multiple regression models with interaction terms to examine the moderating effect of low-income status.

Results: The mean score of childcare gaps was significantly higher for low-income single parents (3.29 hours) than for non-low-income single parents (2.61 hours) (t = -4.27, p < .001). However, non-low-income single parents reported longer working hours (8.65 hours) compared to their low-income counterparts (8.14 hours) (t = 4.108, p < .001). Regression analysis revealed that working hours were positively associated with childcare gaps (β = 0.12, p < .05). The interaction between working hours and low-income status was also significant (β = 0.32, p < .001), indicating that childcare gaps increased more steeply with longer working hours among low-income single parents.

Conclusions: Findings highlight the exacerbated childcare gap faced by low-income single parents despite their slightly shorter working hours compared to non-low-income counterparts. The interaction effect suggests that low-income parents may have fewer childcare resources, leading to greater childcare gaps as working hours increase. These results underscore the need for targeted policy interventions, such as expanding financial support, increasing accessibility to affordable childcare services, and promoting family-friendly workplace policies. Further research should explore longitudinal impacts of childcare gaps on child development and evaluate the effectiveness of policy measures in mitigating these disparities.