'Being a father can make you rich'

Fatherhood pays bonus! Men who have children earn almost up to 19 per cent more than their childless counterparts by the age of 40, according to a new study.

Analysis by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) also found that mothers suffer a "pay penalty" - with incomes up to 14 per cent less than women who do not have children.

According to the statistics, fathers win a "pay bonus" as their salaries are likely to be almost a fifth higher than men who do not have children, 'The Telegraph' reported.

The study shows although women have made substantial progress in the workplace over the past three decades, with the "gender pay gap" between men and women in their 20s having almost disappeared, having children can set them back professionally.

It also suggests that younger women who give birth earlier will pay more of a penalty than those born a decade previously.

IPPR believes that men who become fathers increase their earning capacity because they feel a greater responsibility towards being a breadwinner for their families and compensating, in some cases, for their partners' reduced earnings.

Many employers are said to value fatherhood because it is thought to make male staff more responsible and loyal - putting them at the top of the queue for promotions.

The IPPR studied two cohorts of men and women - born in 1958 and 1970. Mothers born in 1958 earned on average 14 per cent less by the time whey were 40 than childless women born in the same year.

Mothers born in 1970 typically earned 11 per cent less than their childless female colleagues by the time they reached their late 30s.

The research showed that historic inequalities in pay between the sexes meant a mother born in 1958 could expect to earn 32 per cent less, by the time she was 40, than a father born in the same year.

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