Essays on labor supply and entry into adult life: application to France.

Summary The purpose of this thesis is to study the evolution of individuals' labor supply as they enter adulthood. It consists of two major themes. First, we discuss the labor supply decisions of young adults and how these are related to the family environment and to public policies aimed at them. Second, we discuss the impact of the birth of a first child on the labor supply of mothers and fathers. We find that the family environment is a factor of inequality between young adults and that the implementation of minimum income policies would reduce these inequalities. Concerning the birth of a child, it is essentially educated women who are penalized in terms of wages in the short and medium term. It seems that public policies, but also companies, have an important role to play in the return to work behavior of mothers.