Effects of living in the same region as one’s workplace on the total fertility rate of working women in Korea

OBJECTIVES: The lowest-low fertility status of Korea has continued for the past 17 years despite governmental efforts to encourage childbirth. As the number of working women has increased, their residence patterns have changed; however, the impact of this factor has yet to be explored. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the effects of residence patterns relative to the workplace on the total fertility rate of working women. METHODS: Information on eligibility and healthcare utilization was obtained from the National Health Information Database between 2011 and 2015. The study participants were working women aged 15-49 years. We classified their residence relative to their workplace into 3 patterns: same municipality, same province, and different province. The total fertility rate was calculated and logistic regression was performed of childbirth according to residence pattern, adjusting for age, insurance contribution quartile, size of the workplace, year of birth, and province of residence. RESULTS: The total fertility rates of working women from 2011 to 2015 were 1.091, 1.139, 1.048, 1.073, and 1.103, respectively. The total fertility rate by residence pattern was highest in women residing in the same municipality as their workplace. After adjustment, the odds of childbirth in women from the same municipality and the same province were 21.6% and 16.0% higher than those of women residing in a different province, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The total fertility rate was higher among women living near their workplace. Therefore, effective policy measures should be taken to promote the proximity of working women’s workplace and residence.