this rise in educational attainment has contributed to the large increase percentage points over the past years in the female employment rate to in germany the highest proportion of women in the paid workforce outside of the nordic countries and other oecd countries where women are frequently in parttime employment such as the netherlands this increase in labour force participation was associated with a decline in time spent on unpaid home and care work but in germany as elsewhere in the oecd women still bear the brunt of unpaid work and fathers spend a lot less time with children than mothers german parents are more likely than their fellow europeans to report worklife conflict and despite recent increases the total fertility rate tfr in was below the oecd average of chapter however since the mid s social policy reform has increased opportunities for parents to find a better workfamily balance