February 25, 2025

Singapore’s total fertility rate has been declining for decades, reaching a record low of 0.97 in 2023. This trend is largely attributed to the postponement of childbearing, as individuals prioritise career advancement, leading to rising ages of marriage and parenthood. However, the widespread adoption of flexible working arrangements (FWAs), including reduced hours, flexible schedules, and teleworking — especially during and after the COVID-19 pandemic — offers a potential reprieve. In ‘Flexible Working Arrangements and Fertility Intentions: A Survey Experiment in Singapore’ (European Journal of Population, 2024), Assistant Professor Wang Senhu (NUS Sociology and Anthropology) and Assistant Professor Hao Dong (Peking University) investigate how FWAs mediate work-family conflict in Singapore and whether they enhance fertility intentions among unmarried individuals.

The researchers utilised a survey-experimental design, randomly sampling 1,092 employed respondents and assigning them to one of four experimental conditions – a control group, reduced work hours (from the standard 44 hours per week to a maximum of 36), flexible work schedules (allowing at least two days of flexible hours per week), and flexible workplaces. By presenting respondents with hypothetical scenarios of changes in these arrangements, they aimed to isolate the effects of these variations on fertility intentions over the next five years.

The study found that disrupting the prevailing overwork norm through government-initiated FWA policies can significantly enhance young people’s fertility intentions in Singapore. This effect is particularly pronounced among women, with all three types of FWAs positively influencing their fertility intentions. For men, however, only the reduced hours arrangement showed a significant impact. These outcomes may be attributed to FWAs better accommodating work-family conflicts, enabling women to continue their careers after childbirth and fostering a more equitable division of household responsibilities. The effects are especially notable in professional sectors, where the opportunity costs of childbearing are higher. Hence, the researchers advocate for a more family-friendly work environment in developed countries and highlight the broader implications of FWAs in shaping family planning decisions, to mitigate future social challenges associated with prolonged low fertility.

Find out more in the NUS News article ‘NUS study reveals link between flexible working arrangements and plans to have children among young, unmarried and working Singaporeans’ here, and in the Phys.org article ‘Flexible work arrangements may encourage childbearing in Singapore’ here.

You can read the study in the European Journal of Population here.