How much does Social Security offset the motherhood penalty?

Abstract

The brief's key findings are: (1) When women become mothers, their earnings often take a substantial, and permanent, hit that becomes larger with each additional child. (2) The question is, how do Social Security provisions address this motherhood penalty once women enter retirement? (3) The results show that Social Security offsets a substantial portion of the motherhood penalty, both for mothers in general and for each additional child. (4) Despite Social Security's equalizing role, a motherhood penalty will remain in retirement without policy intervention, such as earnings credits for caregivers.