Zitatform

Adamopoulou, Effrosyni, Francesco Manaresi, Omar Rachedi & Emircan Yurdagul (2024): Minimum wages and insurance within the firm. (ZEW discussion paper 24-021), Mannheim, 66 S.

Abstract

"Minimum wages generate an asymmetric pass-through of firm shocks across workers. We establish this result leveraging employer-employee data on Italian metalmanufacturing firms, which face different wage floors that vary within occupations. In response to negative firm productivity shocks, workers close to the wage floors experience higher job separations but no wage loss. However, the wage of high-paid workers decreases, and more so in firms with higher incidence of minimum wages. A neoclassical model with complementarities across workers with different skills rationalizes these findings. Our results uncover a novel channel that tilts the welfare gains of minimum wages toward low-paid workers." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Alessandrini, Diana & Joniada Milla (2024): Minimum Wage Effects on Human Capital Accumulation: Evidence from Canadian Data. In: Journal of Human Capital, Jg. 18, H. 2, S. 346-376. DOI:10.1086/728084

Abstract

"We investigate the impact of the minimum wage on individuals’ post-secondary schooling decisions. Using Canadian longitudinal data, we explore 136 minimum wage amendments and find three novel results. First, the minimum wage affects both thequantity and type of human capital acquired by students. A 10% increase in the minimum wage increases community-college enrollment by 6.2% but reduces University enrollment by 6.5%. Second, high minimum wages widen the university participation gap between individuals with different levels of parental education. Finally, Minimum wage hikes encourage workers who recently separated from their job to return to post-secondary education as mature students" (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Bezooijen, Emiel van, Wiljan van den Berge & Anna Salomons (2024): The Young Bunch: Youth Minimum Wages and Labor Market Outcomes. In: ILR review, Jg. 77, H. 3, S. 428-460. DOI:10.1177/00197939241239317

Abstract

"The authors estimate the effects of an increase in the youth minimum wage in the Netherlands on low-paid workers’ employment and earnings, using a difference-in-differences approach with detailed administrative data. Findings show that the increase does not have a negative effect on the number of jobs or hours worked, hence raising overall earnings for affected workers. Further, the minimum wage increase has substantial spillover effects, accounting for close to 70% of the average wage increase experienced by workers. While employment grows in fixed-term and temporary help agency contracts, the authors do not find evidence of declines in employment in other types of work arrangements, nor of labor-labor substitution. Labor market outcomes evolve most favorably for full-time incumbent workers who are not enrolled in education and are thus less likely to be transient occupants of minimum wage jobs." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Dao, Ngoc (2024): Federal minimum wage expansion to homecare workers: Employment and income effects. In: Labour Economics, Jg. 87. DOI:10.1016/j.labeco.2024.102511

Abstract

"The rapid growth of the home care industry coincides with increases in the proportion of the population over 65 years of age and more likely to need assistance with basic daily activities due to illness or disability. Yet, the growth in home care use has been accompanied by concerns about the quality of the care provided. Higher wages and better legal protection might improve the quality of home health care services. This study examines the 2013 Home Care Rule promulgated by the Department of Labor, which added home care workers to the groups covered under the federal minimum wage with minimum hourly and overtime rates. The results show large effects (7–9 %) on part-time employment increase, small effects on work hour reduction (by 2–4 %), and nonnegative effect on overall employment level following the expansion. Despite the decline in hours worked, there is no negative impact on earnings among homecare workers." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2024 Elsevier) ((en))

Zitatform

Egger, Hartmut, Udo Kreickemeier & Jens Wrona (2024): Monopsony Power, Offshoring, and a European Minimum Wage. (CESifo working paper 10920), München, 24 S.

Abstract

"This paper sets up a two-country model of offshoring with monopolistically competitive product and monopsonistically competitive labor markets. In our model, an incentive for offshoring exists even between symmetric countries, because shifting part of the production abroad reduces local labor demand and allows firms to more strongly execute their monopsonistic labor market power. However, offshoring between symmetric countries has negative welfare effects and therefore calls for policy intervention. In this context, we put forward the role of a common minimum wage and show that the introduction of a moderate minimum wage increases offshoring and reduces welfare. In contrast, a sizable minimum wage reduces offshoring and increases welfare. Beyond that, we also show that a sufficiently high common minimum wage cannot only eliminate offshoring but also inefficiencies in the resource allocation due to monopsonistic labor market distortions in closed economies." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Firpo, Sergio & Alysson Portella Lorenzon (2024): The labor market in Brazil, 2001–2022. (IZA world of labor 441), Bonn, 10 S. DOI:10.15185/izawol.441.v2

Abstract

"In the first decade of the 21st century, the Brazilian economy experienced an important expansion followed by a significant decline in inequality. The minimum wage increased rapidly, reducing inequality with no negative effects on employment or formality. This resulted from economic growth and greater supply of skilled labor. However, from 2014-2021, real wages were stagnant, and unemployment rates surged. Inequality rose again, although only marginally. Some positive signs emerged in 2022, although it is still too early to know whether they mark a return to past trends or a recovery from the pandemic." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Fossati, Sebastian & Joseph Marchand (2024): First to $15: Alberta's Minimum Wage Policy on Employment by Wages, Ages, and Places. In: ILR review, Jg. 77, H. 1, S. 119-142. DOI:10.1177/00197939231213064

Abstract

"Most minimum wage studies are identified on small, plentiful, mostly expected wage changes, spread out over time. A recent set of changes have instead been large, rapid, and unexpected, following the “Fight for $15” movement. Alberta is the first North American province, state, or territory to have this $15 minimum wage, with an unexpectedly large increase (47%) occurring over a short time horizon (3 years). The employment effects of this policy are estimated using a synthetic control approach on Labour Force Survey data. Similar to the existing literature, workers moved up the wage distribution, increment by increment, but with a higher distributional reach. Employment losses occurred at similar elasticities, but with large level changes, mostly among younger workers. Newer to the literature, regional employment losses were found in four of the five non-urban economic regions, but not in Alberta’s two main cities, showing the significance and nuance of regional heterogeneity." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Giupponi, Giulia, Robert Joyce, Attila Lindner, Tom Waters, Thomas Wernham & Xiaowei Xu (2024): The Employment and Distributional Impacts of Nationwide Minimum Wage Changes. In: Journal of labor economics, Jg. 42, H. S1, S. S293-S333. DOI:10.1086/728471

Abstract

"We assess the impact of nationwide minimum wages on employment throughout the whole wage distribution by exploiting geographical variation in the level of wages. We find a substantial increase in wages at the bottom of the wage distribution, while we detect a small, statistically insignificant negative effect on employment. Combining the estimated change in the wage distribution with a tax and benefit microsimulation model, we show that the minimum wage generates considerable proportional income gains up to the middle of the household income distribution." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Lenhart, Otto & Kalyan Chakraborty (2024): Income assistance programs and population health – The dual impact of minimum wages and the earned income tax credit. In: Economics Letters, Jg. 234. DOI:10.1016/j.econlet.2023.111508

Abstract

"In this study, we provide new evidence on the interaction of state-level minimum wages and Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) laws on several measures of population health. Using data from the National Vital Statistics Reports between 1999 and 2018, we estimate difference-in-differences models to evaluate the dual impact of minimum wages and the EITC on various causes of mortality, such as suicides, motor accidents and assaults. While several researchers have examined the health effects of both these policies separately, few studies have examined the potential interaction effects of these policies. Specifically, while previous work has provided evidence that both minimum wages and the EITC can reduce suicide rates, our study contributes to the literature by showing that the policies have a positive dual impact on population health. We find that a $1 increase in minimum wages reduces death rates due to suicides and assaults by 3.8 percent and 15.2 percent in states with EITC laws, respectively. In contrast, we show that minimum wages do not impact these outcomes in states without state-level EITC laws." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2024 Elsevier) ((en))

Zitatform

Lübker, Malte & Thorsten Schulten (2024): WSI-Mindestlohnbericht 2024: Reale Zugewinne durch die Umsetzung der Europäischen Mindestlohnrichtlinie. (WSI-Report 93), Düsseldorf, 21 S.

Abstract

"In den meisten EU-Staaten kam es zum 1. Januar 2024 zu deutlichen Erhöhungen der Mindestlöhne. Diese reichten trotz anhaltend hoher Inflationsraten in der Mehrzahl der Mitgliedsländer aus, um die Kaufkraft des Mindestlohns zu erhalten oder sogar auszubauen. Begünstigt wurde die Mindestlohndynamik auch durch die im Herbst 2022 verabschiedete Europäische Mindestlohnrichtlinie. Viele Mitgliedsländer streben im Zuge der Umsetzung der EU-Richtlinie an, die dort verankerten Referenzwerte von 60 % des Medianlohns bzw. 50 % des Durchschnittslohns zu erreichen. Anders verlief die Entwicklung in Deutschland: Hier plädierte die Mindestlohnkommission gegen die Stimmen der Gewerkschaften nur für eine geringe Anhebung des Mindestlohns, die hinter die Preisentwicklung zurückfällt." (Textauszug, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Neumark, David (2024): The effects of minimum wages on (almost) everything? A review of recent evidence on health and related behaviors. In: Labour, Jg. 38, H. 1, S. 1-65. DOI:10.1111/labr.12263

Abstract

"I review and assess the evidence on minimum wage effects on health outcomes and health‐related behaviors. The evidence on physical health points in conflicting directions, leaning toward adverse effects. Research on effects on diet and obesity sometimes points to beneficial effects, whereas other evidence indicates that higher minimum wages increase smoking and drinking and reduce exercise (and possibly hygiene). In contrast, there is evidence that higher minimum wages reduce suicides, partly consistent with the evidence of positive or mixed effects on other measures of mental health/depression. Overall, policy conclusions that minimum wages improve health are unwarranted or at least premature." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

Zitatform

Andrieu, Elodie & Malgorzata Kuczera (2023): Minimum Wage and Skills - Evidence from Job Vacancy Data. (TPI working papers / The Productivity Institute 034), Manchester, 62 S.

Abstract

"Low-wage occupations tend to be populated by workers with low levels of education. An increase in the minimum wage, while designed to protect workers in the lower part of the wage distribution, might result in unintended consequences for those same workers. In this paper, we study firms’ reaction to higher minimum wages, exploiting a change to the minimum-wage policy in the UK in 2016. We document how an increase in the minimum wage affects the labour hiring for different education and technical skill levels of workers. The results show that an increase in the minimum wage compressed both the demand for low educated workers and the demand for workers with low levels of technical skills (tech workers) for graduates in low and middle skilled occupations. Using a difference-in-differences framework, we find that a large and unexpected change to the minimum wage led to a 11 percentage point decrease in the proportion of non-graduate vacancies and a 15 percentage point decline in the share of low-tech ads. There is evidence for labour-labour substitution at the low-end of the skill distribution and labour-technology substitution for more educated workers as a way to compensate for labour costs increases." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Babet, Damien, Olivier Godechot & Marco G. Palladino (2023): In the Land of AKM: Explaining the Dynamics of Wage Inequality in France. (INSEE documents de travail / Institut National de la Statistique et des Etudes Economiques 2023-20), Paris, 63 S.

Abstract

"We use a newly built and quasi-exhaustive matched employer-employee database to study firms contribution towage inequalities in France. We employ the Abowd, Kramarz, and Margolis (1999) model (hereafter AKM) to decompose log-wage variance into between- and within-firm components. Our analysis covering the period from 2002 to 2019 reveals a significant increase in between-firm inequalities, driven by a growing tendency of high-wage workers to cluster together in high premium firms. These phenomena are directly associated with changes in firms demographics and workforce composition. Over the same period, bottom earnings percentiles increased more than the rest of the distribution, in line with the rise in the legal minimum wage. As a result, within-firm inequalities decreased, almost offsetting the rising between-firm inequalities." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Brandon, Alec, Justin E. Holz, Andrew Simon & Haruka Uchida (2023): Minimum Wages and Racial Discrimination in Hiring: Evidence from a Field Experiment. (Upjohn Institute working paper 389), Kalamazoo, Mich., 90 S. DOI:10.17848/wp23-389

Abstract

"When minimum wages increase, employers may respond to the regulatory burdens by substituting away from disadvantaged workers. We test this hypothesis using a correspondence study with 35,000 applications around ex-ante uncertain minimum wage increases in three U.S. states. Before the increases, applicants with distinctively Black names were 19 percent less likely to receive a callback than equivalent applicants with distinctively white names. Announcements of minimum wage hikes substantially reduce callbacks for all applicants but shrink the racial callback gap by 80 percent. Racial inequality decreases because firms disproportionately reduce callbacks to lower-quality white applicants who benefited from discrimination under lower minimum wages." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Brochu, Pierre, David A. Green, James Townsend & Thomas Lemieux (2023): The minimum wages, turnover, and the shape of the wage distribution. (IFS working paper / Institute for Fiscal Studies 2023,32), London, 62 S.

Abstract

"This paper proposes an empirical approach to decompose the distributional effects of minimum wages into effects for workers moving out of employment, workers moving into employment, and workers continuing in employment. We estimate the effects of the minimum wage on the hazard rate for wages, which provides a convenient way of re-scaling the wage distribution to control for possible employment effects. We find that minimum wage increases do not result in an abnormal concentration of Job Leavers below the new minimum wage, which is inconsistent with employment effects predicted by a neoclassical model. We also find that, for Job Stayers, the spike and spillover effects of the minimum wage are simply shifted right to the new minimum wage. Our findings are consistent with a model where entry wages are set according to a job ladder, and where firms preserve their internal wage structure due to fairness or internal incentives issues." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Brochu, Pierre, David A. Green, Thomas Lemieux & James Townsend (2023): The Minimum Wage, Turnover, and the Shape of the Wage Distribution. (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 16514), Bonn, 62 S.

Abstract

"This paper proposes an empirical approach to decompose the distributional effects of minimum wages into effects for workers moving out of employment, workers moving into employment, and workers continuing in employment. We estimate the effects of the minimum wage on the hazard rate for wages, which provides a convenient way of re-scaling the wage distribution to control for possible employment effects. We find that minimum wage increases do not result in an abnormal concentration of Job Leavers below the new minimum wage, which is inconsistent with employment effects predicted by a neoclassical model. We also find that, for Job Stayers, the spike and spillover effects of the minimum wage are simply shifted right to the new minimum wage. Our findings are consistent with a model where entry wages are set according to a job ladder, and where firms preserve their internal wage structure due to fairness or internal incentives issues." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Burkhauser, Richard V., Drew McNichols & Joseph J. Sabia (2023): Minimum Wages and Poverty: New Evidence from Dynamic Difference-in-Differences Estimates. (NBER working paper / National Bureau of Economic Research 31182), Cambridge, Mass, 97 S.

Abstract

"Advocates of minimum wage increases have long touted their potential to reduce poverty. This study assesses this claim. Using data spanning nearly four decades from the March Current Population Survey, and a dynamic difference-in-differences approach, we find that a 10 percent increase in the minimum wage is associated with a (statistically insignificant) 0.17 percent increase in the probability of longer-run poverty among all persons. With 95% confidence, we can rule out long-run poverty elasticities with respect to the minimum wage of less than -0.129, which includes central poverty elasticities reported by Dube (2019). Prior evidence suggesting large poverty-reducing effects of the minimum wage are (i) highly sensitive to researcher’s choice of macroeconomic controls, and (ii) driven by specifications that limit counterfactuals to geographically proximate states (“close controls”), which poorly match treatment states’ pre-treatment poverty trends. Moreover, an examination of the post-Great Recession era — which saw frequent, large increases in state minimum wages — failed to uncover poverty-reducing effects of the minimum wage across a wide set of specifications. Finally, we find that less than 10 percent of workers who would be affected by a newly proposed $15 federal minimum wage live in poor families." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Clemens, Jeffrey & Michael R. Strain (2023): Does Wage Theft Vary by Demographic Group? Evidence from Minimum Wage Increases. (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 16550), Bonn, 30 S.

Abstract

"Using Current Population Survey data, we assess whether and to what extent the burden of "wage theft" - wage payments below the statutory minimum wage - falls disproportionately on various demographic groups following minimum wage increases. For most racial and ethnic groups at most ages we find that underpayment rises similarly as a fraction of realized wage gains in the wake of minimum wage increases. We also present evidence that the burden of underpayment falls disproportionately on relatively young African American workers and that underpayment increases more for Hispanic workers among the full working-age population." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Cova, Joshua (2023): Politicizing the minimum wage: A multilingual text analysis of minimum wages in European electoral manifestos. In: Journal of European Social Policy, Jg. 33, H. 4, S. 469-483. DOI:10.1177/09589287231199561

Abstract

"This article examines the determinants of the growing political salience of minimum wages in European party manifestos. By using multilingual quantitative text analysis, I show that the electoral salience of minimum wages has increased in the past decades. Although left-wing parties emphasize minimum wages more than right-wing parties, I find that the electoral salience of this policy follows a U-shaped relationship: right-wing populist parties dedicate greater attention to minimum wages than centre-right parties do. A sentiment analysis finds that compared to other policies designed to supplement the income of low-wage workers, such as strengthening collective bargaining institutions and in-work benefits/wage subsidies, there do not seem to be specific party-political characteristics, which determine the sentiment with which discussions on minimum wages are framed." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Dickens, Richard (2023): How are minimum wages set? (IZA world of labor 211), Bonn, 11 S. DOI:10.15185/izawol.211.v2

Abstract

"The minimum wage has never been as high on the political agenda as it is today, with politicians in Germany, the UK, the US, and other OECD countries implementing substantial increases in the rate. One reason for the rising interest is the growing consensus among economists and policymakers that minimum wages, set at the right level, may help low paid workers without harming employment prospects. But how should countries set their minimum wage rate? The processes that countries use to set their minimum wage rate and structure differ greatly, as do the methods for adjusting it. The different approaches have merits and shortcomings." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Fazio, Andrea & Tommaso G. Reggiani (2023): Minimum Wage and Tolerance for High Incomes. (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 16107), Bonn, 27 S.

Abstract

"We suggest that stabilizing the baseline income can make low-wage workers more tolerant towards high income earners. We present evidence of this attitude in the UK by exploiting the introduction of the National Minimum Wage (NMW), which institutionally sets a baseline pay reducing the risk of income losses and providing a clear reference point for British workers at the lower end of the income distribution. Based on data from the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS), we show that workers who benefited from the NMW program became relatively more tolerant of high incomes and more likely to support and vote for the Conservative Party. As far as tolerance for high incomes is related to tolerance of inequality, our results may suggest that people advocate for equality also because they fear income losses below a given reference point." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Fazio, Andrea & Tommaso Reggiani (2023): Minimum wage and tolerance for high incomes. In: European Economic Review, Jg. 155. DOI:10.1016/j.euroecorev.2023.104445

Abstract

"We suggest that stabilizing the baseline income can make low-wage workers more tolerant towards high income earners. We present evidence of this attitude in the UK by exploiting the introduction of the National Minimum Wage (NMW), which institutionally sets a baseline pay reducing the risk of income losses and providing a clear reference point for British workers at the lower end of the income distribution. Based on data from the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS), we show that workers who benefited from the NMW program became relatively more tolerant of high incomes and more likely to support and vote for the Conservative Party. As far as tolerance for high incomes is related to tolerance of inequality, our results may suggest that people advocate for equality also because they fear income losses below a given reference point." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2023 Elsevier) ((en))

Zitatform

Filauro, Stefano, Klaus Grünberger & Edlira Narazani (2023): The Impact of Minimum Wages on Income Inequality in the EU. (JRC working papers on taxation and structural reforms 2023,04), Seville, 33 S.

Abstract

"A number of studies documents that minimum wage policies have the potential to reduce income inequality. The recently adopted EU Commission's proposal for a Directive on adequate minimum wages was supported by a detailed analysis of the social impacts of hypothetical minimum wage levels in countries with a statutory minimum wage. This paper extends these country-level analyses by exploring the impact of minimum wage policies on EU-level income inequality. To our knowledge, this is the first study that uses a microsimulation model such as EUROMOD to assess the impact of EU-promoted policies on the distribution of income in the EU, beyond their national effects. Assuming no employment effects, static simulation results show that a hypothetical minimum wage corresponding to 60% of the national median wage would bring about a small but significant reduction in EU-level disposable income inequality (by 0.75% in 2019 as measured through the Gini index). This result stems primarily from a reduction in the within-country component of income inequality as the effect on inequality between countries is rather muted. The reduction in EU-level income inequality is the highest in disposable incomes, but some reduction is detectable also in market incomes. In turn, the withdrawal of social benefits because of higher minimum wages seems to neutralise part of this inequality reduction." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Forsythe, Eliza (2023): The Effect of Minimum Wage Policies on the Wage and Occupational Structure of Establishments. In: Journal of labor economics, Jg. 41, H. S1, S. S291-S324. DOI:10.1086/726820

Abstract

"Using establishment-level panel data from the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, I estimate the effect of minimum wage increases implemented by 10 states in 2014 and 2015. I show that minimum wage increases lead to wage spillovers within establishments. I find little evidence that minimum wage increases induce establishments to reorganize their occupational mix. Finally, I find that minimum wage increases propagate up the management hierarchy, leading to increased wages for supervisors. Nonetheless, I find overall wage inequality decreases within establishments after minimum wage increases." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Gerritsen, Aart (2023): To Redistribute or to Predistribute? The Minimum Wage versus Income Taxation When Workers Differ in Both Wages and Working Hours. (CESifo working paper 10734), München, 53 S.

Abstract

"I consider the case for the minimum wage alongside (optimal) income taxes when workers differ in both wages and working hours, such that a given level of income corresponds to multiple wage rates. The minimum wage is directly targeted at the lowest-wage workers, while income taxes are at most targeted at all low-income workers, regardless of their hourly wage rates. This renders the minimum wage unambiguously desirable in a discrete-type model of the labor market. Desirability of the minimum wage is a priori ambiguous in a continuous-type model of the labor market. Compared to the minimum wage, income taxes are less effective in compressing the wage distribution but more effective in redistributing income. Desirability of the minimum wage depends on this trade-off between the “predistributional advantage” of the minimum wage and the “redistributional advantage” of the income tax. I derive a desirability condition for the minimum wage and write it in terms of empirical sufficient statistics. A numerical application to the US suggests a strong case for a higher federal minimum wage – especially if social preferences for the lowest-wage workers are relatively strong and the wage elasticity of labor demand relatively small." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Glasner, Benjamin (2023): The Minimum Wage, Self-Employment, and the Online Gig Economy. In: Journal of labor economics, Jg. 41, H. 1, S. 103-127. DOI:10.1086/719690

Abstract

"This paper estimates the effect of minimum wage increases on work that is not covered by minimum wage laws. I find minimum wage increases in the early 2000s resulted in small reductions in engagement in traditional self-employment. Following the development of the online gig economy in the 2010s, a 10% increase in the minimum wage increased the number of non-employer establishments classified as transportation and warehousing services by approximately 2.7%. The counties most likely to exhibit a positive relationship between the minimum wage and participation in uncovered work are those with low labor market concentration and active Uber marketplaces." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Haapanala, Henri, Ive Marx & Zachary Parolin (2023): Decent wage floors in Europe: Does the minimum wage directive get it right? In: Journal of European Social Policy, Jg. 33, H. 4, S. 421-435. DOI:10.1177/09589287231176977

Abstract

"The Directive on Adequate Minimum Wages represents a watershed initiative adding substance to the EU’s social dimension. It contains two ambitious objectives: establishing the minimum level of statutory minimum wages at 60% of the gross median wage, and increasing collective bargaining coverage (CBC) to at least 80% of workers. In this article, we assess how statutory minimum wages and collective bargaining coverage are associated with the likelihood of low pay. Using a time series cross-section of EU-SILC for income years 2004–2019, we identify and assess the absolute and relative size of ‘effective wage floors’ for full-time employees in 30 countries. We specify multilevel, random effects within-between regression models to assess the individual and joint associations of SMW and collective bargaining coverage with wage floors. Our results indicate that SMWs and CBC both have distinct roles in establishing the effective wage floor. First, higher collective bargaining coverage is on average associated with a lower share of workers earning below 60% gross median wages. Second, higher SMWs are strongly associated with higher effective wage floors. Third, both collective bargaining coverage and union density are strongly associated with higher wage floors." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Hamilton, Reg & Matt Nichol (2023): One Hundred Years of Dynamic Minimum Wage Regulation: Lessons from Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States. In: International Labour Review, Jg. 162, H. 3, S. 407-429. DOI:10.1111/ilr.12380

Abstract

"Since the first minimum wage legislation was introduced in Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States in the early 1900s, minimum wage regulation has attracted controversy. Opponents of minimum wage levels rely on market theory, while supporters acknowledge the role of markets in setting the price of labour but justify state intervention based on principles of equity and social good. This article examines how these two ideological positions influenced fixing what is both a crucial cost for business and underpinning of worker and family living standards, and whether effective wage fixing has resulted. Little comparative research exists on the origins, evolution and current systems of minimum wage regulation in the three countries and this article aims to address this gap in the literature." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

Zitatform

Hean, Oudom & Nanxin Deng (2023): The effects of minimum wages over the business cycle: the Great Recession. In: International Journal of Manpower, Jg. 44, H. 1, S. 19-36. DOI:10.1108/IJM-07-2021-0402

Abstract

"Purpose: This paper examines disemployment effects of minimum wages during the period 2002–2010. Design/methodology/approach: The authors employ the discontinuity design. Findings: The authors find that minimum wages had a significant negative impact on teen employment before the Great Recession. During the Great Recession, the disemployment effects of minimum wages were insignificant. The finding is consistent with the evolution of firms' market power during the business cycle. Originality/value: The authors attempt to reconcile the debate about the effects of minimum wages on US employment." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Emerald Group) ((en))

Zitatform

Huet-Vaughn, Emiliano & Jon Piqueras (2023): The Asymmetric Effect of Wage Floors: A Natural Experiment with a Rising and Falling Minimum Wage. (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 16684), Bonn, 14 S.

Abstract

"Exploiting a unique natural experiment,we Show the asymmetric effects of a large increase and an equivalent subsequent decrease to a binding minimum wage. Wages in a leading low-wage industry increase as the Minimum wage rises, but do not fall when it is lowered. This boost for low-wage workers' earnings is apparently permanent five years after the policy is revoked, providing novel evidence of hysteresis in wage setting from temporary labor policy. In the first year post repeal this is consistent with downward nominal wage rigidity. But, the elevated earnings persist even in high inflation times, contrary to the prediction from existing work that real wage reductions under high inflation should erode the nominal wage gap relative to unaffected firms. Our findings thus challenge the conventional view that inflation "greases the wheels" of the labor market in the face of downward nominal wage rigidity, and, demonstrate the value of even transitory labor market policy in achieving permanent gains for workers (play it while you got it)." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Jiménez, Bruno (2023): The Political economy of the minimum wage. In: Labour Economics, Jg. 85. DOI:10.1016/j.labeco.2023.102463

Abstract

"I evaluate the effects of the 2016 minimum wage hike in Peru on the approval of government performance. My identification strategy exploits the regional heterogeneity in the share of workers directly affected by the increase to implement a series of difference-in-differences specifications. For every percentage point increase in the share of treated workers, the approval of the central government (i.e., the president) also increases by a percentage point. I find a partial spillover effect to other levels of government. These results are robust to a number of alternative specifications and falsification tests, and cannot be explained by the results of the 2016 presidential elections. My findings suggest that improvements in subjective living conditions and non-negative effects on observed labor market performance are the main mechanisms behind these causal effects." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2024 Elsevier) ((en))

Zitatform

Juliana, Maria, Charry Camargo, Alessandra Crippa, Serena Drufuca, Flavia Pesce, Manuela Samek Lodovici, Elena Cottini, Bernardo Fanfani & Claudio Lucifora (2023): Minimum wages: Non-compliance and enforcement across EU Member State. Comparative report. (Eurofound research report / European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions), Dublin, 119 S. DOI:10.2806/474422

Abstract

"In the EU, non-compliance with statutory or negotiated minimum wages averages 6.93% or 1.3%, depending on the statistics used. The lowest national estimate is 0.01% in Belgium and the highest is 11.59% in Hungary. It mostly affects young workers, those on fixed-term or part-time contracts and those working for small companies. It is more common in services than in manufacturing, and is characterized by shorter working time. Member States monitor, enforce and promote compliance in similar ways, although with some differences. This report identifies hindering and enabling factors. Some countries focus on specific economic sectors, such as construction, domestic work, platform work, agriculture and meat processing. National authorities often enforce minimum wages indirectly by helping employers comply, raising workers’ awareness, and helping stakeholders increase cooperation and develop faster procedures. Combining these soft initiatives with tougher measures increases the effectiveness of inspectorates’ actions in enforcing compliance with minimum wages." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Lübker, Malte & Thorsten Schulten (2023): WSI-Mindestlohnbericht 2023. Kaufkraftsicherung als zentrale Aufgabe in Zeiten hoher Inflation. (WSI-Report 82), Düsseldorf, 19 S.

Abstract

"Die rasant gestiegenen Verbraucherpreise belasten Beschäftigte mit niedrigen Einkommen in besonderem Maße. Deswegen ist es derzeit eine vordringliche Aufgabe der Lohnpolitik, die Kaufkraft der Mindestlöhne zu sichern. Wie der diesjährige WSI-Mindestlohnbericht zeigt, ist dies trotz einer deutlichen Anhebung der nominalen Mindestlöhne zum 1. Januar 2023 nur in rund der Hälfte der EU-Länder gelungen. Vor diesem Hintergrund verfolgt die neue Europäische Mindestlohnrichtlinie das Ziel, allen Beschäftigten einen angemessenen Mindestlohn zu garantieren. Das Kriterium der Angemessenheit beinhaltet, dass die EU-Mitgliedsländer künftig bei der Anpassung der Mindestlöhne deren jeweilige Kaufkraft, also die zugrunde liegenden Lebenshaltungskosten, mitberücksichtigen müssen. Dies stellt auch in Deutschland die hierzulande zuständige Mindestlohnkommission vor neuen Handlungsbedarf." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Lübker, Malte & Thorsten Schulten (2023): WSI-Mindestlohnbericht 2023. Kaufkraftsicherung als zentrale Aufgabe in Zeiten hoher Inflation. In: WSI-Mitteilungen, Jg. 76, H. 2, S. 112-122. DOI:10.5771/0342-300X-2023-2-112

Abstract

"Der WSI-Mindestlohnbericht enthält neue Daten über Mindestlöhne aus insgesamt 38 Ländern in Europa und darüber hinaus. Die aktuelle Entwicklung der Mindestlöhne steht ganz im Zeichen der enorm hohen Inflationsraten. Während in der Hälfte der 22 EU-Staaten, die gesetzliche Mindestlöhne haben, die realen Mindestlöhne gesichert oder sogar erhöht werden konnten, reichten die Mindestlohnerhöhungen in den restlichen EU-Staaten nicht aus, um teilweise erhebliche Reallohnverluste zu vermeiden. Vor diesem Hintergrund sieht die im Oktober 2022 verabschiedete Europäische Mindestlohnrichtlinie die Kaufkraft als ein wesentliches Kriterium an, das bei der Festsetzung eines als angemessen geltenden Mindestlohns zu berücksichtigen ist. In einigen europäischen Ländern wie z. B. Belgien oder Frankreich ist die Reallohnsicherung der Mindestlöhne schon heute gesetzlich verankert und wird durch entsprechende Indexierungsklauseln gewährleistet. In Deutschland hat die Erhöhung des Mindestlohns auf 12 € den Beschäftigten zunächst einmal ein kräftiges Reallohnplus beschert. Für zukünftige Anpassungen steht jedoch auch hier die Reallohnsicherung auf der Tagesordnung." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Mabbett, Deborah (2023): In the shadow of hierarchy: minimum wage commissions in the UK and Germany. In: Socio-economic review, Jg. 21, H. 4, S. 2117-2135. DOI:10.1093/ser/mwad027

Abstract

"The adoption of statutory minimum wages (MWs) has been accompanied by institutional innovations in the relationship between governments, employers and unions. In the UK and Germany, MW commissions were created to recommend or determine the MW. Their memberships are dominated by trade unionists and employers. Structures that engage the social partners 'in the shadow of hierarchy' can be efficient as well as politically expedient. They will be stable if, first, the social partners can establish a consensual basis for decisions and, second, this consensus position is near enough to the government's position not to trigger intervention. The first condition has been met but not the second: both in the UK and Germany, governments have overridden employers and unions in order to introduce higher MWs. The article explores why this has happened and draws out the implications for MW fixing and the stability of shadow-of-hierarchy arrangements." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Meer, Jonathan & Hedieh Tajali (2023): Effects of the Minimum Wage on the Nonprofit Sector. (NBER working paper / National Bureau of Economic Research 31281), Cambridge, Mass, 37 S.

Abstract

"The nonprofit sector's ability to absorb increases in labor costs differs from the private sector in a number of ways. We analyze how nonprofits are affected by changes in the minimum wage utilizing data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Internal Revenue Service, linked to state minimum wages. We examine changes in reported employment and volunteering, as well as other financial statements such as revenues and expenses. The results from both datasets show a negative impact on employment for states with large statutory minimum wage increases. We observe some evidence for a reduction in the number of nonprofit establishments, fundraising expenses, and revenues from contributions." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Muñoz, Mathilde (2023): International Trade Responses to Labor Market Regulations. (NBER working paper / National Bureau of Economic Research 31876), Cambridge, Mass, 61 S.

Abstract

"This paper studies how differences in labor market regulations shape countries' comparative advantage in the cross-border provision of labor-intensive services, using administrative data in Europe for the last two decades. I exploit exogenous variation in labor taxes and minimum wages faced by exporting firms engaged in a large European trade program. Firms from different countries compete to supply the same physical service in the same location but their employees are subject to different payroll taxes and minimum wages. These rules varied across countries, sectors, and over time. Reduced-form country case-studies as well as model-implied gravity estimates show evidence of large trade responses to lower labor taxes and minimum wages, with an elasticity that is around one. The Bolkestein directive, by exempting foreign firms from all labor regulations in the destination country, would have doubled exports of physical services from Eastern European countries, rationalizing the wave of protests in high-wage countries that led to the withdrawal of the proposal." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Neumark, David (2023): The Effects of Minimum Wages on (Almost) Everything? A Review of Recent Evidence on Health and Related Behaviors. (NBER working paper / National Bureau of Economic Research 31191), Cambridge, Mass, 57 S.

Abstract

"The effects of minimum wages on employment, wages, earnings, and incomes, have been studied and debated for decades. In recent years, however, researchers have turned to the effects on a multitude of other behaviors and outcomes – largely related to health. I review and assess the large and growing body of evidence on minimum wage effects on a wide variety of health outcomes and health-related behaviors. The evidence on overall physical health is mixed. The findings on diet and obesity either point to beneficial or null effects, but not negative effects, while other evidence indicates that higher minimum wages increase smoking and reduce exercise. The evidence for mental health is ambiguous, with somewhat more studies finding no impact than finding a positive impact (but none finding a negative impact). And the evidence for suicide points clearly to beneficial effects of higher minimum wages. Studies on family structure and children point in different directions, with evidence that mothers spend more time with children, no clear indication of changes in treatment of children, but declines in children's test scores. The evidence generally points to minimum wages increasing risky behavior (drinking and smoking). Evidence on the effects of minimum wages on crime is mixed. The best evidence on employer-provided health insurance is more adverse, although Medicaid expansions under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) may have mitigated this influence, and there is not clear evidence of greater unmet medical needs. Other evidence suggests that higher minimum wages may affect health adversely via different channels." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Oka, Tatsushi & Ken Yamada (2023): Heterogeneous Impact of the Minimum Wage: Implications for Changes in Between- and Within-group Inequality. In: The Journal of Human Resources, Jg. 58, H. 1, S. 335-362. DOI:10.3368/jhr.58.3.0719-10339R1

Abstract

"Most of the workers who earn at or below the minimum wage are either less educated, young, or female in the United States. We examine the extent to which the minimum wage influences the wage differential among workers with different observed characteristics and the wage differential among workers with the same observed characteristics. Our results suggest that changes in the real value of the minimum wage account in part for the patterns of changes in education, experience, and gender wage differentials and for most of the changes in within-group wage differentials for workers with lower levels of experience." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System) ((en))

Zitatform

Oliveira, Carlos (2023): The minimum wage and the wage distribution in Portugal. In: Labour Economics, Jg. 85. DOI:10.1016/j.labeco.2023.102459

Abstract

"Raising the minimum wage can reshape the wage distribution. Using a semiparametric approach, counterfactual decomposition methods, and an extremely rich administrative dataset of all employees in Portugal, this paper presents significant visual and quantitative evidence of how changes in the minimum wage shaped the country’s wage distribution over the last thirty years. For most of this period, the importance of the minimum wage was decreasing. However, a sustained rise since 2006 coincided with a decline in wage inequality that was comparable to the United States’ total increase in inequality over the last five decades. This remarkable compression of the wage distribution can be fully accounted for by the rising minimum wage. While a minority of workers were directly covered by the minimum wage, spillover effects were observed up to the 54th percentile of the wage distribution, explaining more than half of its inequality-reducing effect. Portugal experienced modest wage growth between 2006 and 2019 but 38% of it can be associated to the increasing minimum wage." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2024 Elsevier) ((en))

Zitatform

Pedersen, Siri Hansen & Georg Picot (2023): Regulating low wages: cross-national policy variation and outcomes. In: Socio-economic review, Jg. 21, H. 4, S. 2093-2116. DOI:10.1093/ser/mwad019

Abstract

"This article provides a comparative analysis of three central policies to regulate low wages: statutory minimum wages, state support for collective bargaining and topping up low wages with public transfers (in-work benefits). We map the variation of these policies across 33 OECD countries and analyze the incidence of low-wage employment they are associated with. We find three approaches to regulating low wages. In the first, 'wage scale protection', states put most emphasis on supporting collective bargaining. In the second, 'bare minimum', there is not much else than the statutory minimum wage. In the third, 'state pay', the statutory minimum wage is supplemented by sizeable public financial support for low earners. When analyzing policy outcomes, 'wage scale protection' is associated with least low-wage employment. For 'bare minimum', much depends on the level of the statutory minimum wage. Although 'state pay' props up workers' disposable income, many workers receive low gross pay." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Schmillen, Achim, Michael Stops & Dewen Wang (2023): The Determinants of China's Minimum Wage Rates. In: China & World Economy, Jg. 31, H. 3, S. 59-91., 2023-02-12. DOI:10.1111/cwe.12489

Abstract

"We use a highly disaggregated panel of macro data and minimum wages at the county level to investigate the processes behind minimum wage adjustments in China. Relying on random effects models, spatial econometrics techniques, and multilevel analyses, we document that a comparatively small number of economic variables – including the local price level and GDP per capita – are important determinants of minimum wage rates. Interactions between adjacent counties and counties of the same administrative type, and centralized mechanisms, particularly at the provincial level, also play an important role in explaining the variance in minimum wage rates across counties. Finally, we show that China's provinces are the key players for setting minimum wage rates and that, when they do so, they are not uniform in the way they weigh different economic variables." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Wiley) ((en))

Zitatform

Taylor, Garrett C. & James E. West (2023): Minimum Wage Effects Within Census Based Statistical Areas: A Matched Pair Cross-Border Analysis. (NBER working paper / National Bureau of Economic Research 31196), Cambridge, Mass, 14 S.

Abstract

"Using monthly data from major U.S. metropolitan areas that span state borders, we estimate the elasticity of employment with respect to the minimum wage using a difference-in-differences design with continuous treatment in two-digit industries of 71 (Arts, Entertainment and Recreation) and 72 (Accommodation and Food Services). In specifications that control for differences in state sales, personal and corporate income tax rates, we find negative average causal response on the treated (ACRT) in six-digit industries where we expect large numbers of young, entry-level employees, but positive correlations in other industries. Our results illustrate important heterogeneities in minimum wage effects in urban versus rural areas." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Taylor, Garrett C. & James E. West (2023): Minimum wage effects within Census Based Statistical Areas: A matched pair cross-border analysis. In: Economics Letters, Jg. 229. DOI:10.1016/j.econlet.2023.111220

Abstract

"Using monthly data from major U.S. metropolitan areas that span state borders, we estimate the elasticity of employment with respect to the minimum wage using a difference-in-differences design with continuous treatment in two-digit industries of 71 (Arts, Entertainment and Recreation) and 72 (Accommodation and Food Services). In specifications that control for differences in state sales, personal and corporate income tax rates, we find a negative average causal response on the treated (ACRT) in six-digit industries where we expect large numbers of young, entry-level employees but positive correlations in other industries. Our results illustrate important heterogeneities in minimum wage effects in urban versus rural areas." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2023 Elsevier) ((en))

Zitatform

Viotto, Regina (2023): Neue europäische Richtlinie zu Mindestlöhnen und Tarifbindung. (Hans-Böckler-Stiftung. Working paper Forschungsförderung 292), Düsseldorf, 44 S.

Abstract

"Der vorliegende Beitrag beschäftigt sich mit der im November 2022 in Kraft getretenen europäischen Mindestlohnrichtlinie, die einen Meilenstein in der europäischen Gesetzgebung darstellt. Es handelt sich um die erste EU-Rechtsvorschrift, die direkt die Erhöhung von gesetzlichen Mindestlöhnen und die Stärkung der nationalen Tarifvertragssysteme bezweckt. Insofern stellt sie nicht weniger als einen Paradigmenwechsel hin zu einem sozialen Europa dar. Ziele des Aufsatzes sind es, die wesentlichen Inhalte der Richtlinie darzustellen, juristisch zu prüfen, politisch zu bewerten und in einen Kontext zur bisherigen EU-Rechtsprechung und -politik zu setzen." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Winters, Jutta; Alan Manning (interviewte Person) (2023): Alan Manning: "It is important to have institutions such as the minimum wage to adress the market power of employers" (Interview). In: IAB-Forum H. 05.06.2023 Nürnberg. DOI:10.48720/IAB.FOO.20230605.02

Abstract

"Professor Alan Manning, one of the world’s most renowned labour market economists, explains in this video-statement the basic idea of imperfect competition in the labour market. He elaborates on the power of employers to keep wages lower than they would be in a competitive market and stresses the importance to address this imbalance with institutions such as the minimum wage." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Wursten, Jesse & Michael Reich (2023): Racial inequality in frictional labor markets: Evidence from minimum wages. In: Labour Economics, Jg. 82. DOI:10.1016/j.labeco.2023.102344

Abstract

"We provide the first causal analysis of how state and federal minimum wage policies in the U.S. have affected labor market frictions and racial wage gaps. Using stacked event studies, binned difference-in-differences estimators, within-person analyses and classic panel methods, we find that minimum wages increased wages of black workers between 16 and 64% more than among white workers and reduced the overall black-white wage gap by 10% (and by 56% among workers most affected by the policies). Racial differences in initial wages cannot explain this differential effect. Rather, minimum wages expand job opportunities for black workers more than for white workers. We present a model with labor market frictions in which minimum wages expand the job search radius of workers who do not own automobiles and who live farther from jobs. Our causal results using the ACS show that minimum wages increase commuting via automobile among black workers but not among white workers, supporting our model. Minimum wages also reduce racial gaps in separations and hires, further suggesting the policies especially enhance job opportunities for black workers." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2023 Elsevier) ((en))

Zitatform

Žarković, Jelena, Artan Mustafa & Mihail Arandarenko (2023): Minimum income in the Western Balkans: From socialism to the European Pillar of Social Rights. In: Social Policy and Administration, Jg. 57, H. 1, S. 1-15. DOI:10.1111/spol.12855

Abstract

"In this article, we examine the evolution of minimum income programmes in the Western Balkans (comprising Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia). During socialism, Yugoslavia developed a rudimentary minimum income protection programme, while Albania did not have one. As countries moved towards a market economy, socialism's legacy remained relevant, but especially since 2000, governments have taken more direct responsibility for the minimum income schemes—typically under the influence of the World Bank. The attention was paid to strict targeting accuracy rather than to adequacy or sufficient coverage of the lowest deciles. In essence, neither socialist nor neoliberal policymakers ever recognised anything but the poverty relief function of the minimum income. Both ideologies were hostile, or at best indifferent, to increasing the adequacy and generosity of minimum income programmes, perceiving them as impediments and distractions that slowed socialist and neoliberal transformations. Despite some reform initiatives supported by the World Bank and, more recently, the European Union, the generosity and adequacy of minimum income programmes remain low, and coverage keeps declining. There have been very few efforts to develop inclusion function of the minimum income, while the activation aspect has achieved very little, sometimes degrading into punitive programmes of unpaid community work. In this dismal picture, the European Pillar of Social Rights action framework could serve as a guide for a long overdue third phase in the Western Balkans' minimum income policy evolution." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

Zitatform

Europäische Kommission. Generaldirektion Beschäftigung, Soziales und Integration (2023): Labor Market and Wage Developments in Europe 2023. (Labour market and wage developments in Europe : annual review), Luxembourg, 138 S.

Abstract

"The Labor Market and Wage Developments in Europe report analyses the labor market from a macroeconomic perspective. This year’s edition discusses the situation and prospects for the EU labor market, which has continued to perform well notwithstanding the economic slowdown and an economic context characterised by persistent uncertainty. The report also reviews recent wage and labor cost developments in the EU and its Member States in the current high-inflation environment. While wage growth has been robust, it has not been sufficient to compensate for the high inflation. At the same time, statutory minimum wage policies have contributed to protecting the purchasing power of minimum-wage earners. Finally, the report examines the developments in working time across the EU, assessing how individual preferences have evolved following the COVID-19 pandemic and discussing the effects of working time policies on workers’ wellbeing and on the broader economic context." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Abstract

"This study explores the importance of financial incentives for the labor market integration of minimum income recipients compared to other factors, via three distinct strands of analysis: Benefit adequacy and work incentives: The study examines the potential trade-off in the design of minimum income schemes between ensuring adequate income support and providing sufficient incentive for recipients to look for employment. To do so, it calculates for each EU Member State the “participation tax rate” (PTR), which measures the net income lost by someone moving from receiving minimum income benefits into work relative to the income gained. It then assesses the actual importance of high PTRs on work incentives by analysing the empirical evidence available. Gradual phasing out of benefits: The study examines how minimum income schemes make use of tapering to ensure a financial incentive for recipients to take up (more) work. To do so, it takes inventory of the tapering arrangements currently applicable in Member States and examines how these are implemented. It also identifies recent reforms to tapering mechanisms, case studies on six recent reforms, and uses these to reflect on their impact. Active labor market policies for minimum income recipients: The study examines the use of active labour market policies and what types of policy may be most effective in enabling transition for minimum income benefit recipients. To do so, it performs a quantitative analysis of the data from the EU Labor Market Policy database and a qualitative analysis of evaluations of programs co-funded by the European Social Fund. In both cases long-term unemployed were used as a proxy for minimum income benefit recipients." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Adam, Georg (2022): Die Entwicklung der gesetzlichen Mindestlohnsetzung in der EU und ihre Bedeutung für die Gewerkschaften. In: Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft, Jg. 48, H. 3, S. 365-406.

Abstract

"In der Europäischen Union bestehen auf nationaler Ebene sehr unterschiedliche Mindestlohnregime. Dieser Beitrag fokussiert auf den internationalen Vergleich von Mindestlohnregimen, wobei besonderes Augenmerk auf die Modi der gesetzlichen Festlegung von Mindestlöhnen gelegt wird. Darüber hinaus analysiert der Beitrag – ausgehend vom Konzept der Governance – den wechselseitigen Zusammenhang zwischen der gesetzlichen Mindestlohnsetzung und der Kollektivvertragspolitik. Drittens beleuchtet der Beitrag auf Grundlage des sogenannten Machtressourcenansatzes den Zusammenhang zwischen der Mindestlohnpolitik und den unterschiedlichen Dimensionen gewerkschaftlicher Macht. Insbesondere wird untersucht, unter welchen Bedingungen der gesetzliche Mindestlohn als institutionelle Machtressource der Gewerkschaften fungieren kann." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Adamopoulou, Effrosyni, Francesco Manaresi, Omar Rachedi & Emircan Yurdagul (2022): Minimum Wages and Insurance Within the Firm. (CRC TR 224 discussion paper series / EPoS Collaborative Research Center Transregio 224 326), Bonn, 46 S.

Abstract

"Minimum wages alter the allocation of firm-idiosyncratic risk across workers. To establish this result, we focus on Italy, and leverage employer-employee data matched to firm balance sheets and hand-collected wage floors. We find a relatively larger pass-through of firm-specific labor-demand shocks into wages for the workers whose earnings are far from the floors, but who are employed by establishments intensive in minimum-wage workers. We study the welfare implications of this fact using an incomplete-market model. The asymmetric pass-through uncovers a novel channel which tilts the benefits of removing minimum wages toward high-paid employees at the expense of low-wage workers." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Adams, Camilla, Jonathan Meer & CarlyWill Sloan (2022): The minimum wage and search effort. In: Economics Letters, Jg. 212. DOI:10.1016/j.econlet.2022.110288

Abstract

"Labor market search-and-matching models posit supply-side responses to minimum wage increases that may lead to improved matches and lessen or even reverse negative employment effects. Using event study analysis of recent minimum wage increases, we find that these changes do not affect the likelihood of searching, but do lead to transitory spikes in search effort by individuals already looking for work. These results are not driven by changes in the composition of searchers, and are concentrated among the groups most likely to be impacted by the minimum wage and in response to larger minimum wage increases." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2022 Elsevier) ((en))

Zitatform

Afonso, António, João Tovar Jalles & Zoe Venter (2022): Minimum Wage and Collective Bargaining Reforms: A Narrative Database for Advance Economies. (CESifo working paper 9692), München, 21 S.

Abstract

"This paper presents and describes a new database of major minimum wage and collective bargaining reforms covering 26 advanced economies over the period 1970-2020. The main advantage of this dataset is the precise identification of the nature and date of major reforms, which is valuable in many empirical applications. Based on the dataset, major changes in minimum wages have been more frequent than in collective bargaining in the last decades, and the majority of these were implemented during the 1980s and 1990s. In our empirical application, we find that minimum wage reforms have a medium-run positive impact on labor productivity and they lead to a fall in the unemployment rate. Collective bargaining reforms do not seem to affect either productivity or capital formation but they have a clear medium-term effect on the labor market. Moreover, collective bargaining reforms are more sensitivity to the prevailing business cycle conditions at the time of the reform (vis-à-vis minimum wage reforms)." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Agarwal, Sumit, Brent W. Ambrose & Moussa Diop (2022): Minimum wage increases and eviction risk. In: Journal of Urban Economics, Jg. 129. DOI:10.1016/j.jue.2021.103421

Abstract

"We extend the debate on the benefits to increasing the minimum wage by examining the impact on expenses associated with shelter, a previously unexplored area. Our analysis uses a unique data set that tracks household rental payments. Increases in state minimum wages significantly reduce the incidence of renters defaulting on their lease contracts by 1.7 percentage points over three months, relative to similar renters who did not experience an increase in the minimum wage. This represents 10.6% fewer monthly defaults. However, this effect slowly decreases over time as landlords react to wage increases by increasing rents." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2022 Elsevier) ((en))

Zitatform

Albinowski, Maciej & Piotr Lewandowski (2022): The heterogeneous regional effects of minimum wages in Poland. In: Economics of Transition and Institutional Change, Jg. 30, H. 2, S. 237-267. DOI:10.1111/ecot.12283

Abstract

"We evaluate the impact of large minimum wage hikes on employment and wage growth in Poland between 2004 and 2018. We estimate panel data models utilizing the considerable variation in wage levels, and in minimum wage bites, across 73 Polish NUTS 3 regions. We find that minimum wage hikes had a significant positive effect on wage growth and a significant negative effect on employment growth only in regions of Poland that were in the first tercile of the regional wage distribution in 2007. These effects were moderate in size, and appear to be more relevant for wages. Specifically, if the ratio of minimum wage to average wage had remained constant after 2007, by 2018, the average wages in these regions would have been 3.2% lower, while employment would have been 1.2% higher. In the remaining two-thirds of Polish regions, we find no significant effects of minimum wage hikes on average wages or on employment." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

Zitatform

Berger, David W., Kyle F. Herkenhoff & Simon Mongey (2022): Minimum Wages, Efficiency and Welfare. (NBER working paper 29662), Cambridge, Mass, 84 S. DOI:10.3386/w29662

Abstract

"It has long been argued that a minimum wage could alleviate efficiency losses from monopsony power. In a general equilibrium framework that quantitatively replicates results from recent empirical studies, we find higher minimum wages can improve welfare, but most welfare gains stem from redistribution rather than efficiency. Our model features oligopsonistic labor markets with heterogeneous workers and firms and yields analytical expressions that characterize the mechanisms by which minimum wages can improve efficiency, and how these deteriorate at higher minimum wages. We provide a method to separate welfare gains into two channels: efficiency and redistribution. Under both channels and Utilitarian social welfare weights the optimal minimum wage is $15, but alternative weights can rationalize anything from $0 to $31. Under only the efficiency channel, the optimal minimum wage is narrowly around $8, robust to social welfare weights, and generates small welfare gains that recover only 2 percent of the efficiency losses from monopsony power." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Boffy-Ramirez, Ernest (2022): Push or Pull? Measuring the labor supply response to the minimum wage using an individual-level panel. In: Applied Economics, Jg. 54, H. 35, S. 4043-4059. DOI:10.1080/00036846.2021.2020713

Abstract

"For individuals in low-wage labour markets, an increase in the minimum wage can theoretically pull them into or push them out of the labour force. If increases raise expected wages beyond reservation wages, marginal individuals could enter the labour force and begin searching for employment. If increases lower expected wages, marginal individuals already in the labour force could exit. Leveraging revised individual identifiers in the U.S. Current Population Survey, this research estimates the contemporaneous effects of minimum wage increases on labour force participation. The use of within-person variation, short individual panels, and flexible controls for time create an empirical strategy that mitigates potential biases from unobserved constant individual-level heterogeneity and time-varying factors. This research finds that minimum wage changes tend to impact the youngest individuals, but there is substantial heterogeneity in responses by age, race/ethnicity, and sex. There is stronger evidence of pull effects amongst young white men and Latinos, and weaker evidence amongst young Black women and older Latinas. Weak evidence of push effects is observed amongst younger white women, younger Latinos, and older Latinas. This research highlights heterogeneous labour force participation responses to further inform our understanding of search behaviour and labour market churn." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Cengiz, Doruk, Arindrajit Dube, Attila S. Lindner & David Zentler-Munro (2022): Seeing Beyond the Trees: Using Machine Learning to Estimate the Impact of Minimum Wages on Labor Market Outcomes. In: Journal of labor economics, Jg. 40, H. S1, S. S203-S247. DOI:10.1086/718497

Abstract

"We assess the effect of the minimum wage on labor market outcomes. First, we apply modern machine learning tools to predict who is affected by the policy. Second, we implement an event study using 172 prominent minimum wage increases between 1979 and 2019. We find a clear increase in wages of affected workers and no change in employment. Furthermore, minimum wage increases have no effect on the unemployment rate, labor force participation, or labor market transitions. Overall, these findings provide little evidence of changing search effort in response to a minimum wage increase." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Clemens, Jeffrey & Michael R. Strain (2022): How Important are Minimum Wage Increases in Increasing the Wages of Minimum Wage Workers? (NBER working paper 29824), Cambridge, Mass, 39 S. DOI:10.3386/w29824

Abstract

"Popular discussion commonly presumes an outsized role for minimum wage increases as a driver of wage increases for minimum wage workers. In this paper, we investigate the accuracy of this presumption using data from the earnings studies of the Current Population Survey (CPS). CPS wage and earnings data enable us to assess the fraction of minimum wage workers who receive a raise within 12 months of their initial appearance as a minimum wage worker. On average from 2010 to 2019, we find that roughly 75 percent of minimum wage workers who remain employed experience a wage increase within 12 months. This fraction is higher during the later years of the sample, when the labor market has been strong, than in the earlier years. The fraction of minimum wage workers receiving wage increases is moderately higher when states enact minimum wage increases than when they do not. We also find that the fraction of minimum wage workers receiving wage increases is correlated with several measures of labor market tightness. Finally, wage gains are quite commonly associated with industry and/or occupation switches. This highlights the importance of career progression for the growth of earnings among entry-level workers. The vast majority of the wage gains realized by minimum wage workers thus appear to be driven by career progression and increases in labor demand. Minimum wage increases play a modest role as a driver of earnings trajectories beyond shaping the initial, typically short-lived, minimum wage job itself." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Clemens, Jeffrey & Michael R. Strain (2022): Understanding "wage theft": Evasion and avoidance responses to minimum wage increases. In: Labour Economics, Jg. 79. DOI:10.1016/j.labeco.2022.102285

Abstract

"This paper presents strong evidence that minimum wage increases lead to a greater prevalence of subminimum wage payment. Using the Current Population Survey, we estimate that increases in measured underpayment following minimum wage increases average between 12 and 17 percent of realized wage gains. Our baseline analyses focus on workers ages 16 to 25, while additional analyses consider workers ages 16 to 65. In addition, we find that firms and workers comply to a far greater degree with minimum wage increases that are forecastable, modest, and regular than with minimum wage increases enacted through new legislation. We also find evidence that states' enforcement regimes influence the compliance patterns we observe. We interpret these findings as evidence that while minimum wage compliance is the norm, noncompliance is an important, economically nuanced reality in the low-wage labor market." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2022 Elsevier) ((en))

Zitatform

Clemens, Jeffrey & Michael R. Strain (2022): Does measurement error explain the increase in subminimum wage payment following minimum wage increases? In: Economics Letters, Jg. 217. DOI:10.1016/j.econlet.2022.110638

Abstract

"In analyses of minimum wages, positive “ripple effects” and subminimum wages are difficult to distinguish from measurement error. Indeed, prior work posits that a simple, symmetric measurement error process may underlie both phenomena in Current Population Survey data for the full working age population. We show that the population-wide symmetry between spillovers and subminimum wage payment is illusory in that spillovers accrue to older individuals while subminimum wage payment accrues to the young. Symmetric measurement error cannot explain this heterogeneity, which increases the likelihood that both spillovers and subminimum-wage payment are real effects of minimum wage increases rather than artifacts of measurement error." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2022 Elsevier) ((en))

Zitatform

Clemens, Jeffrey & Michael R. Strain (2022): The Minimum Wage and Union Membership among Minimum Wage Workers: Why Do Unions Advocate for Minimum Wage Increases? (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 15685), Bonn, 10 S.

Abstract

"Over the past decade, organized labor has played a significant role in advocating for minimum wage increases. In this paper, we investigate the effects of minimum wage increases on union membership among individuals in minimum wage intensive industries. Consistent with a "freeriding" hypothesis, we find that minimum wage increases predict declines in union membership among low-skilled's most direct beneficiaries. We find no evidence of a change in union membership among high-skilled workers in these industries." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Doris, Aedín, Donal O'Neill & Olive Sweetman (2022): The Introduction of a Living Wage in Ireland. (Working papers / Department of Economics, NUI Maynooth 316), Maynooth, 50 S.

Abstract

"In June 2022 the Irish government announced intentions to replace the existing national minimum wage with a new Living Wage (LW) set at 60% of median wages. In this paper we review the evidence on the impact of a LW on wages, employment, inequality and poverty, We then use data from the EU-SILC to examine the characteristics of workers likely to be affected by the new LW and empirically examining the potential impact of the proposed LW on wages inequality and poverty. When examining the impact on labour market outcomes we also compare the impact of the proposed LW with a number of alternative LWs. While the proposed policy will increase the wages of the most vulnerable workers, we show that the introduction of a national LW would have a relatively small effect on inequality, poverty and the gender wage gap. In keeping with previous work, this shows how policies aimed only at workers fall short of addressing concerns about poverty and inequality; addressing these issues requires more powerful public policies." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Fazio, Andrea & Tommaso Reggiani (2022): Minimum wage and tolerance for inequality. (MUNI ECON working paper 2022-07), Brno, 19 S.

Abstract

"We suggest that people advocate for equality also because they fear income losses below a given reference point. Stabilizing their baseline income can make workers more tolerant of inequality. We present evidence of this attitude in the UK by exploiting the introduction of the National Minimum Wage (NMW), which institutionally set a baseline pay reducing the risk of income losses for British workers at the bottom of the income distribution. Based on data from the British Household Panel Survey, we show that workers that benefited from the NMW program became relatively more tolerant of inequality and more likely to vote for the Conservative party." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Garcia-Louzao, Jose & Linas Tarasonis (2022): Wage and Employment Impact of Minimum Wage: Evidence from Lithuania. (Working paper series / Lietuvos Bankas 103), Vilnius, 43 S.

Abstract

"This paper evaluates the worker-level effects of a historically large and permanent increase in the minimum wage in Lithuania. Our identification strategy leverages variation in workers' exposure to the new minimum wage, and exploits the fact that there has been no increase in the minimum wage in previous years, to account for heterogeneous labor market prospects of low-wage workers relative to high-wage workers. Using detailed administrative records to track workers before and after the policy change, we show that the minimum wage hike significantly increased the earnings of low-wage workers. This direct effect was amplified by wage spillovers reaching the median of the income distribution. Overall, we find no negative effects on the employment prospects of low-wage workers. However, we provide suggestive evidence that young workers, highly exposed municipalities, and tradable sectors may be more negatively affected. Taken together, our findings imply an employment elasticity with respect to the minimum wage of -0.021, and an own-wage elasticity of -0.033, suggesting that wage gains dominated employment losses." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Garnero, Andrea & Claudio Lucifora (2022): Turning a 'Blind Eye'? Compliance with Minimum Wage Standards and Employment. In: Economica, Jg. 89, H. 356, S. 884-907. DOI:10.1111/ecca.12421

Abstract

"Turning a ‘blind eye’ to non-compliance with minimum wage standards is sometimes presented as a pragmatic way to accommodate higher wages while not harming employment opportunities for workers employed in marginal firms. In this paper, we model firms' wage and employment decisions, and show that there may be a trade-off between non-compliance and employment. The main predictions of the model are tested empirically using data from the Italian labour force survey. We find evidence of a positive employment non-compliance effect, though elasticities are smaller than typically thought as employers internalize the expected costs of non-compliance. We also show that employment effects are larger at low levels of non-compliance (when the risk of being referred to court is very low). The implications for policy and the role of regulators in monitoring and sanctioning non-compliance are discussed." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

Zitatform

Grünberger, Klaus, Edlira Narazani, Stefano Filauro & Áron Kiss (2022): Social and fiscal impacts of statutory minimum wages in EU countries. A microsimulation analysis with EUROMOD. In: IZA Journal of Labor Policy, Jg. 12, H. 1. DOI:10.2478/izajolp-2022-0009

Abstract

"This paper analyzes the effects of hypothetical MW (HMW) increases on social and fiscal outcomes in 21 European Union (EU) countries with a statutory national MW (NMW) based on a microsimulation approach using EUROMOD. The methodological challenges related to the use of available EU household survey data are described, along with the choices made to address these challenges. The paper assesses hypothetical scenarios in which countries with a statutory NMW increase their minimum wage (MW) to various reference values, set in relation to the gross national median and average wage. The model simulations suggest that MW increases can significantly reduce in-work poverty, wage inequality, and the gender pay gap, while generally improving the public budget balance. The implied wage increases for the beneficiaries are substantial, while the implied increases in the aggregate wage bill are generally modest. Extensions explore possible effects on employment and labor supply at the intensive margin." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Haapanala, Henri, Ive Marx & Zachary Parolin (2022): Decent Wage Floors in Europe: Does the Minimum Wage Directive Get It Right? (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 15660), Bonn, 45 S.

Abstract

"The Directive on Adequate Minimum Wages represents a watershed initiative adding substance to the EU's social dimension. It contains two ambitious objectives: establishing the minimum level of statutory minimum wages (SMWs) at 60% of the gross median wage, and increasing collective bargaining coverage (CBC) to at least 80% of workers. In this paper, we assess how minimum wages and collective bargaining affect low pay. Using a time series cross-section of EU-SILC for income years 2004-2019, we identify and assess the absolute and relative size of 'effective wage floors' for full-time employees in 30 countries. We specify multilevel, random effects within-between (REWB) regression models to assess the individual and joint effects of SMW and CBC on wage floors. Our results indicate that SMW and CBC both have distinct roles to play in establishing the effective wage floor. First, countries with a statutory minimum wage have a lower share of workers earning below 60% gross median wage than countries without one. Furthermore, higher rates of CBC are essential for pushing down the share of workers on below-decent pay. Countries without a SMW but with CBC above the 80% target value have roughly the same proportion of below-decent pay as SMW countries with CBC less than 30-40%. However, at higher rates of CBC, SMW countries are predicted to overtake non-SMW countries on this measure. A hypothetical SMW country meeting the target value of 80% CBC is predicted to have less than 6.5% of full-time employees earning below-decent pay." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Hurst, Erik, Patrick J. Kehoe, Elena Pastorino & Thomas Winberry (2022): The Distributional Impact of the Minimum Wage in the Short and Long Run. (NBER working paper 30294), Cambridge, Mass, 66 S. DOI:10.3386/w30294

Abstract

"We develop a framework with rich worker heterogeneity, firm monopsony power, and putty-clay technology to study the distributional impact of the minimum wage in the short and long run. Our production technology is disciplined to be consistent with the small estimated employment effects of the minimum wage in the short run and the large estimated elasticities of substitution across inputs in the long run. We find that in the short run, a large increase in the minimum wage has a small effect on employment and therefore increases the labor income of the workers who were earning less than the new minimum wage. In the long run, however, the minimum wage has perverse distributional implications in that it reduces the employment, income, and welfare of precisely the low-income workers it is meant to help. Nonetheless, these long-run effects take time to fully materialize because firms slowly adjust their mix of inputs. Existing transfer programs, such as the earned income tax credit (EITC), are more effective at improving long-run outcomes for workers at the low end of the wage distribution. But combining existing programs with a modest increase in the minimum wage generates even larger welfare gains for low-earning workers." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Jha, Priyaranjan, David Neumark & Antonio Rodriguez-Lopez (2022): What's across the Border? Re-Evaluating the Cross-Border Evidence on Minimum Wage Effects. (IZA discussion paper 15282), Bonn, 31 S.

Abstract

"Dube, Lester, and Reich (2010) argue that state-level minimum wage variation can be correlated with economic shocks, generating spurious evidence that higher minimum wages reduce employment. Using minimum wage variation within contiguous county pairs that share a state border, they find no relationship between minimum wages and employment in the U.S. restaurant industry. We show that this finding hinges critically on using cross-border counties to define local economic areas with which to control for economic shocks that are potentially correlated with minimum wage changes. We use, instead, multi-state commuting zones, which provide superior definitions of local economic areas. Using the same within-local area research design—but within cross-border commuting zones—we find a robust negative relationship between minimum wages and employment." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Johnson, Matthew S. & Michael Lipsitz (2022): Why are Low-Wage Workers Signing Noncompete Agreements? In: The Journal of Human Resources, Jg. 57, H. 3, S. 689-724. DOI:10.3368/jhr.57.3.0619-10274R2

Abstract

"Policymakers are concerned by evidence that noncompete agreements (NCAs) are widely used in low-wage jobs. We show that firms that would otherwise not use NCAs are induced to use one in the presence of frictions to adjusting wages downward. Using a new survey of salon owners, we find that declines in the terms of trade for employees and increases in the minimum wage lead to higher NCA use, but only at firms for which the employee's cost of an NCA likely exceeds the employer's benefit. Furthermore, minimum wage increases have a negative effect on employment only where NCAs are unenforceable." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System) ((en))

Zitatform

Ku, Hyejin (2022): Does Minimum Wage Increase Labor Productivity? Evidence from Piece Rate Workers. In: Journal of labor economics, Jg. 40, H. 2, S. 325-359. DOI:10.1086/716347

Abstract

"We examine worker effort as a potential margin of adjustment to a minimum wage hike using unique data on piece rate workers who perform a homogenous task and whose individual output is rigorously recorded. By employing a difference-in-differences strategy that exploits the increase in Florida’s minimum wage from USD 6.79 to USD 7.21 on January 1, 2009, and worker location on the pre-2009 productivity distribution, we provide evidence consistent with incumbent workers’ positive effort responses." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Kudlyak, Marianna, Murat Tasci & Didem Tüzemen (2022): Minimum Wage Increases and Vacancies. (IZA discussion paper 15254), Bonn, 37 S.

Abstract

"Using a unique data set and a novel identification strategy, we estimate the effect of minimum wage increases on job vacancy postings. Utilizing occupation-specific county- level vacancy data from the Conference Board's Help Wanted Online for 2005-2018, we find that state-level minimum wage increases lead to substantial declines in existing and new vacancy postings in occupations with a larger share of workers who earn close to the prevailing minimum wage. We estimate that a 10 percent increase in the state-level effective minimum wage reduces vacancies by 2.4 percent in the same quarter, and the cumulative effect is as large as 4.5 percent a year later. The negative effect on vacancies is more pronounced for occupations where workers typically have lower educational attainment (high school or less) and in counties with higher poverty rates. We argue that our focus on vacancies versus on employment has a distinct advantage of highlighting a mechanism through which minimum wage hikes affect labor demand. Our finding of a negative effect on vacancies is not inconsistent with the wide range of findings in the literature about the effect of minimum wage changes on employment, which is driven by changes in both hiring and separation margins." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Liu, Andrew Yizhou (2022): The Minimum Wage And Occupational Mobility. In: International Economic Review, Jg. 63, H. 2, S. 917-945. DOI:10.1111/iere.12552

Abstract

"This article quantifies the effect of minimum wages on workers' occupational mobility. I show that minimum wages decrease younger, less-educated workers' occupational mobility and are associated with more mismatch. A search-and-matching model highlights two channels by which the minimum wage decreases occupational mobility. First, it compresses wages and reduces the gain from switching, leading to lower occupational mobility and more mismatch. Second, it decreases vacancy posting. Calibrating the model to the U.S. economy, the results suggest that a 15 dollar minimum wage can damp aggregate output by 0.4%, of which the wage compression channel accounts for 80%." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

Zitatform

Lübker, Malte & Thorsten Schulten (2022): WSI-Mindestlohnbericht 2022. Aufbruch zu einer neuen Mindestlohnpolitik in Deutschland und Europa. (WSI-Report 71), Düsseldorf, 20 S.

Abstract

"Nicht nur in Deutschland steht der Mindestlohn derzeit weit oben auf der politischen Agenda – zahlreiche europäische Länder sind auf dem Weg zu strukturell höheren Mindestlöhnen. Als Richtwert für ein angemessenes Mindestlohnniveau gilt dabei die Schwelle von 60% des Medianlohns, die auch im Kontext der Europäischen Mindestlohninitiative diskutiert wird. Der diesjährige WSI-Mindestlohnbericht zeigt, dass Mindestlöhne in dieser Höhe umsetzbar sind, wenn hierfür eine klare politische Richtungsentscheidung getroffen wird. Deutschland würde sich mit der geplanten Anhebung des Mindestlohns auf 12 € diesem Richtwert annähern und damit innerhalb Europas vom bisherigen Nachzügler bei Mindestlohnerhöhungen zum Vorreiter in der Mindestlohnpolitik werden." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Majchrowska, Aleksandra & Pawel Strawinski (2022): Heterogeneous employment effects of minimum wage policies. (Working papers / Faculty of Economic Sciences, University of Warsaw 2022-18), Warsaw, 40 S.

Abstract

"We explain the variations in the employment effects with respect to minimum wage changes among different groups of workers. Prior analyses considered only two dimensions, investigating employment effects over time across groups of workers or regions. We propose a multidimensional panel data approach to simultaneously analyze the heterogeneous employment effects of minimum wage changes across age groups, economic sectors, and regions over time. Latent heterogeneities in regional employment reactions are discovered, indicating that the employment effect in the regional labor market is the result of a combination of specific labor market features related to the composition of workers and employers." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Manning, Alan (2022): Der flüchtige Beschäftigungseffekt des Mindestlohns. In: A. Heise & T. Pusch (Hrsg.) (2022): Mindestlöhne – Szenen einer Wissenschaft, S. 137-174.

Abstract

"Mit der Vielzahl von Papieren, die versuchen, den Effekt von Mindestlöhnen auf die Beschäftigung zu schätzen, steigt die Gefahr, den Blick auf die Frage nach dem 'Warum' zu verlieren. Insbesondere auf die Frage, warum es so schwer ist, negative Beschäftigungseffekte von Mindestlöhnen auszumachen. Vielleicht gibt es gewisse ökonomische Faktoren, die den kleinen und oftmals ambivalenten Effekt des Mindestlohns auf die Beschäftigung erklären? Oder vielleicht sind Arbeitsmärkte fundamental von anderen Märkten verschieden? Diese Anliegen sollen in diesem Beitrag diskutiert werden. Die Schlussfolgerung ist, dass der Beschäftigungseffekt des Mindestlohns schwer fassbar ist, aber auch, dass die Ökonomen hiervon nicht überrascht sein sollten, wenn man bedenkt, wie Arbeitsmärkte funktionieren, in denen Abweichungen vom vollständigen Wettbewerb viel größer sind als in vielen anderen Märkten. Tatsächlich mag es an der Zeit sein, dass die Forschung einen Schritt vorwärts macht und sich die Frage stellt, wie weit der Mindestlohn erhöht werden kann, ohne signifikante Beschäftigungseffekte auszulösen." (Textauszug, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

McHenry, Peter & Jennifer M. Mellor (2022): The Impact of Recent State and Local Minimum Wage Increases on Nursing Facility Employment. In: Journal of labor research, Jg. 43, H. 3/4, S. 345-368. DOI:10.1007/s12122-022-09338-x

Abstract

"Various U.S. states and municipalities raised their mandated minimum wages between 2017 and 2019. In some areas, minimum wages became high enough to bind for more professional workers, such as lower paid staff at nursing facilities. We add to the small prior literature on the effects of minimum wages on nursing facility staffing using novel establishment-level data on daily hours worked; these data allow us to examine changes in staffing hours along margins previously unexplored in the minimum wage literature. We find no evidence that minimum wage increases reduced hours worked among lower-paid nurses in nursing facilities. In contrast, we find that increases in state and local minimum wages increased hours worked per resident day by nursing assistants; increases occurred for the average of all days throughout the month and on weekend days. We also find that a higher minimum wage increased the share of days in the month that facilities meet at least 75% of the minimum recommended levels of staffing for nursing assistants. These results lessen concerns that minimum wage hikes may reduce the quality of resident care at nursing facilities." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

Natali, David & Andrea Terlizzi (2022): Minimum income across all ages: a focus on elderly people. (European Trade Union Institute. Working paper 2022,17), Brussels, 40 S.

Abstract

"The risk of poverty is a key issue for European countries. Irrespective of the uneven evolution of that risk – a sharp increase in the aftermath of the Great Recession of 2008 followed by an overall decrease in the past few years – people at risk of poverty represent a key target of social protection and social assistance schemes across the EU Member States and a persistent challenge for policymakers. In response to the call for tender proposed by the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI) and the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), this paper explores some of the many dimensions of old-age poverty and considers the possibility of addressing at least some of these dimensions by means of a guaranteed minimum income for retired persons, including one that could be introduced or coordinated at European level. The paper is organised in three parts. Chapter 1 collects information on poverty risks across Europe and age groups (e.g. between working-age and elderly populations) to assess how people of both working and retirement age are affected by poverty. Some preliminary data shed light on the impact of the pandemic. Chapter 2 assesses minimum pension schemes across Europe (comparing these schemes for the elderly with minimum income schemes for those of working age), with some insights about their efficacy. We also identify the standards that should be kept in account for designing adequate minimum income policies after retirement. Chapter 3 summarises the recent debate at the EU level and suggests policy strategies to provide effective minimum income protection for elderly people to lead a life in dignity. The paper ends with some preliminary conclusions and remarks." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Navarro, Lucas & Mauricio M. Tejada (2022): Does public sector employment buffer the minimum wage effects? In: Review of Economic Dynamics, Jg. 43, S. 168-196. DOI:10.1016/j.red.2021.02.004

Abstract

"This paper studies the impact of a minimum wage policy in a labor market with a private and a public sector. We develop a two-sector search and matching model with minimum wage and heterogeneous workers in their human capital. We structurally estimate the model using data for Chile, a country with a large fraction of employment in the public sector and a binding minimum wage. Counterfactual analysis shows that institutional features of public sector employment reduce labor market frictions and mitigate the negative effect of the minimum wage on unemployment and welfare." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2022 Elsevier) ((en))

Zitatform

Neumark, David & Maysen Yen (2022): Effects of Recent Minimum Wage Policies in California and Nationwide. Results from a Pre-specified Analysis Plan. In: Industrial Relations, Jg. 61, H. 2, S. 228-255. DOI:10.1111/irel.12297

Abstract

"We analyze the impacts of recent city minimum wage increases in California and nationwide, following a pre-analysis plan (PAP) registered prior to the release of data covering two years of minimum wage increases. For California cities, we find a hint of negative employment effects. Nationally, we find some evidence of disemployment effects for teens, but not young adults or high school dropouts. City-specific analyses provide limited evidence of adverse effects on the share low-income, but the pooled city analysis does not; the national analysis generally finds no impact on the share low-income, except for reductions in the share near-poor, although that may at least partly reflect prior trends. All told, we view the results as providing neither strong evidence of substantial adverse effects of city minimum wages, nor strong evidence of substantial beneficial effects." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

Zitatform

Neumark, David & Peter Shirley (2022): Myth or measurement: What does the new minimum wage research say about minimum wages and job loss in the United States? In: Industrial Relations, Jg. 61, H. 4, S. 384-417. DOI:10.1111/irel.12306

Abstract

"The disagreement among studies on the employment effects of minimum wages in the United States is well known. Less well known, and more puzzling, is the absence of agreement on what the research literature says—that is, how economists summarize the body of evidence on the employment effects of minimum wages. Summaries range from “it is now well established that higher minimum wages do not reduce employment,” to “the evidence is very mixed with effects centered on zero so there is no basis for a strong conclusion one way or the other,” to “most evidence points to adverse employment effects.” We explore the question of what conclusions can be drawn from the literature, focusing on the evidence using subnational minimum wage variation within the United States that has dominated the research landscape since the early 1990s. To accomplish this, we assembled the entire set of published studies in this literature and identified the core estimates that support the conclusions from each study, in most cases relying on responses from the researchers who wrote these papers. Our key conclusions are as follows: (i) there is a clear preponderance of negative estimates in the literature; (ii) this evidence is stronger for teens and young adults and the less educated; (iii) the evidence from studies of directly affected workers points even more strongly to negative employment effects; and (iv) the evidence from studies of low-wage industries is less one-sided." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

Zitatform

Renkin, Tobias, Claire Montialoux & Michael Siegenthaler (2022): The Pass-Through of Minimum Wages into U.S. Retail Prices: Evidence from Supermarket Scanner Data. In: The Review of Economics and Statistics, Jg. 104, H. 5, S. 890-908. DOI:10.1162/rest_a_00981

Abstract

"This paper estimates the pass-through of minimum wage increases into the prices of U.S. grocery and drug stores. We use high-frequency scanner data and leverage a large number of state-level increases in minimum wages between 2001 and 2012. We find that a 10% minimum wage hike translates into a 0.36% increase in the prices of grocery products. This magnitude is consistent with a full pass-through of cost increases into consumer prices. We show that price adjustments occur mostly in the three months following the passage of minimum wage legislation rather than after implementation, suggesting that pricing of groceries is forward-looking." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © MIT Press Journals) ((en))

Zitatform

Roupakias, Stelios (2022): Employment and distributional effects of Greece's national minimum wage. (MPRA paper / University Library of Munich 114244), München: University Library of Munich, Germany, 23 S.

Abstract

"This paper provides explores the short-run effects of minimum wage policies on the distribution of earnings and employment. We exploit the variation in the 'bite' of the minimum wage across region-industry cells, employing data from the Greek Labour Force Survey over the period 2016-2020. Using a Difference-in-Differences strategy, we estimate unconditional quantile regressions that yield economically important effects up to the 40th quantile of the earnings distribution. Importantly, we find that this does not come at the expense of disemployment effects, either at the extensive or at the intensive margin. Interestingly, there is some evidence that an increase in the minimum wage intensity is correlated with higher female employment. We attribute this finding to the fact that female labour markets are usually less competitive" (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Schmillen, Achim, Michael Stops & Dewen Wang (2022): The Distribution and Determinants of Minimum Wage Rates. In: World Bank (Hrsg.) (2022): Balancing Workers' Protection and Labor Market Flexibility in China, S. 147-172.

Abstract

"While many analysts have studied the effects of minimum wage rates on wages, employment, and other outcome variables, the distribution and determinants of minimum wages have received less attention. To shed some light on these issues, the authors use a highly disaggregated macro panel of county-level minimum wage rates and other highly disaggregated macro variables from 2005 to 2014 to investigate the distribution of minimum wages in China and the processes used to adjust them. We use spatial econometrics techniques to study the roles of both central mechanisms and spatial interaction effects between subnational governments." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Sousounis, Panos & Gauthier Lanot (2022): Minimum Wage Effects on Reservation Wages. In: Journal of labor research, Jg. 43, H. 3, S. 415-439. DOI:10.1007/s12122-022-09337-y

Abstract

"Reservation wages are part of the transmission mechanism between minimum wages and unemployment via the labour force participation decision. The limited available empirical evidence on the relationship between reservation wages and legal minimum wages suggest that individuals use minimum wages as benchmarks against which their reservation wages are set. This has a profound behavioural effect that may encourage individuals to either enter the labour force or price themselves out of potential employment. We employ a fuzzy regression discontinuity design to explore the influence of minimum wages on reservation wages. Our findings suggest that the behavioural response is too small to be extracted from the variability of the reservation wage data. For policy makers this finding is important. While minimum wages raise earnings and living standards, they can push some workers out of the labour force by increasing their reservation wage beyond the minimum. We do not find any evidence of such a response of the reservation wage of jobseekers to the minimum wage in the UK." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

Zitatform

Todd, Petra E. & Weilong Zhang (2022): Distributional Effects of Local Minimum Wages: A Spatial Job Search Approach. (NBER working paper 30668), Cambridge, Mass, 64 S.

Abstract

"This paper develops and estimates a spatial general equilibrium job search model to study the effects of local and universal (federal) minimum wage policies on employment, wages, job postings, vacancies, migration/commuting, and welfare. In the model, workers, who differ in terms of location and education levels, search for jobs locally and in a neighboring area. If they receive remote offers, they decide whether to migrate or commute. Firms post vacancies in multiple locations and make offers subject to minimum wage constraints. The model is estimated using multiple databases, including the American Community Survey (ACS) and Quarterly Workforce Indicators (QWI), and exploiting minimum wage variation across state borders as well as time series variation (2005-2015). Results show that local minimum wage increases lead firms to post fewer wage offers in both local and neighboring areas and lead lower education workers to reduce interstate commuting. An out-of-sample validation finds that model forecasts of commuting responses to city minimum wage hikes are similar to patterns in the data. A welfare analysis shows how minimum wage effects vary by worker type and with the minimum wage level. Low skill workers benefit from local wage increases up to $10.75/hour and high skill workers up to $12.25/hour. The greatest per capital welfare gain (including both workers and firms) is achieved by a universal minimum wage increase of $12.75/hour." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Welz, Christian & Maria Cantero (2022): Regulating minimum wages and other forms of pay for the self-employed. (Eurofound research report / European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions), Dublin, 67 S. DOI:10.2806/426747

Abstract

"This report is carried out in the context of the three-year pilot project (2021–2023), ‘Role of the minimum wage in establishing the Universal Labour Guarantee’, mandated to Eurofound by the European Commission. Its focus is module 3 of the project, investigating minimum wages and other forms of pay for the self-employed. Out of concern for the challenging conditions faced by certain groups of self-employed workers, some Member States have established or are in discussions about proposing some statutory forms of minimum pay for selected categories of the self-employed. The main objective of the report is to understand how minimum wages, wage rates, tariffs, fees and other forms of pay could be fixed for specific jobs or professions in sectors having a high level of ‘vulnerable’ workers, as well as ‘concealed’ self-employed. While the majority of Member States allow trade union representation, the right to collective bargaining for the selfemployed is much more limited. Only a small number of Member States provide examples of collectively agreed minimum wages or other forms of pay for the self-employed." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Winters, John V. (2022): Minimum Wages and Restaurant Employment for Teens and Adults in Metropolitan and Non-metropolitan Areas. (IZA discussion paper 15499), Bonn, 38 S.

Abstract

"This study estimates effects of minimum wages on individual restaurant employment using the 2005-2019 Current Population Survey (CPS) and a two-way fixed effects regression model. I examine effects for teens and adults with less than an associate's degree for the entire U.S. and by metropolitan area status. The results indicate that minimum wages on average decrease restaurant employment for teens and increase restaurant employment for these adults, suggesting that minimum wages induce labor-labor substitution. However, this pattern is driven by metropolitan areas residents. The estimated coefficient for minimum wages on teen restaurant employment in non-metropolitan areas is not statistically significant." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Abstract

"The first joint report of the Social Protection Committee and the European Commission on minimum income arrives at a crucial moment for social Europe. Considering the current volatile socio-economic situation combined with various megatrends at play, solid safety nets are indispensable for the cohesion of our societies and for assisting those in need. It is evident that achieving the new European target of a reduction by at least 15 million of the number of people at risk of poverty or social exclusion in the EU by 2030 will require more efforts. The income of quasi-jobless households has been lagging behind the general income improvements, pointing to the key importance of strengthening social protection systems, and in particular also minimum income schemes, to cope with economic shocks and support vulnerable groups. As the report shows, large divergences between and within the Member States remain. Principle 14 of the European Pillar of Social Rights stresses the right to adequate minimum income to ensure a life in dignity at all stages of life, alongside effective access to enabling goods and services and, for those who can work, a (re)integration to the labour market. In 2020, the Council of the European Union reflected upon the importance of strengthening minimum income protection and acknowledged that such protection, accompanied by activation and social inclusion services, plays a vital role in mitigating the risk of poverty and social exclusion. The Council also invited the European Commission and the Social Protection Committee to ‘prepare periodically a joint report to analyse and review progress achieved in the development of minimum income protection in the Member States, building on the benchmarking framework for minimum income protection established at EU level.’ This current report responds directly to this call. It provides an overview of the current state of play of minimum income policies in the EU Member States, reflecting the three policy strands of active inclusion: adequate income support, inclusive labour markets and access to quality services. It reviews levels and trends in outcomes and performances of national systems, based on the selected indicators of the agreed benchmarking framework on minimum income. The analysis highlights that on average in the EU, adequacy of minimum income benefits has remained almost unchanged in the last decade in spite of some convergence reflecting the fact that new schemes have been introduced in some Member States and reforms have been carried out in others. Countries with higher coverage generally also show lower depth of poverty. Still, estimates available show that non-take-up of minimum income is high, at around 30 % to 50 % of the eligible population. In terms of facilitating labour market participation, the participation of minimum income beneficiaries in active labour market policy measures appears to be low and often limited to certain types of activities. Coordination with bodies offering other complementary benefits and services also appears to be a challenge in many instances." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Arranz, José M., Enrique Fernández-Macías & Carlos García-Serrano (2021): Wage differentials and segmentation: The impact of institutions and changing economic conditions. In: European journal of industrial relations, Jg. 27, H. 2, S. 203-227. DOI:10.1177/0959680120959008

Abstract

"This paper uses data from the European Survey on Income and Living Conditions to offer new empirical evidence on how wage differentials are influenced by the changing economic conditions, that is, before and after the 2008?2010 recession, and shaped by the different institutional frameworks of European Union countries. We examine whether wage changes are homogeneous across groups of workers, as they are classified by their contractual relationship and working time, and by the heterogeneity in institutions that regulate and affect the labour market. Results obtained by estimating ordinary least squares and quantile regressions confirm the existence of contract and working time wage gaps and allow to estimate their different magnitudes along the wage distribution, and their rise during the recession. The impact of labour market institutions on shaping them is diverse, with more intervention of the government in the setting of the minimum wage and stricter regulation for atypical contracts reducing the wage gaps and producing larger positive effects for low-wage employees." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Ashenfelter, Orley & Stepán Jurajda (2021): Wages, Minimum Wages, and Price Pass-Through: The Case of McDonald's Restaurants. (CERGE-EI working paper 684), Prag, 30 S.

Abstract

"We use highly consistent national-coverage price and wage data to provide evidence on wage increases, labor-saving technology introduction, and price pass-through by a large low-wage employer facing minimum wage hikes. Based on 2016-2020 hourly wage rates of McDonald's Basic Crew and prices of the Big Mac sandwich collected simultaneously from almost all US McDonald's restaurants, we find that in about 25% of instances of minimum wage increases, restaurants display a tendency to keep constant their wage 'premium' above the increasing minimum wage. Higher minimum wages are not associated with faster adoption of touch-screen ordering, and there is near-full price pass-through of minimum wages, with little heterogeneity related to how binding minimum wage increases are for restaurants. Minimum wage hikes lead to increases in real wages (expressed in Big Macs an hour of Basic Crew work can buy) that are one fifth lower than the corresponding increases in nominal wages." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Baek, Jisun, Changkeun Lee & WooRam Park (2021): The impact of the minimum wage on the characteristics of new establishments: Evidence from South Korea. In: Labour Economics, Jg. 72. DOI:10.1016/j.labeco.2021.102059

Abstract

"This paper examines how the minimum wage affects the characteristics of new establishments. We utilize the introduction of a minimum wage of South Korea in 1988 and exploit a data covering the universe of new plants subject to this law. From difference-in-differences analyses, we first confirm that the introduction of the minimum wage caused new plants to remit higher remuneration to workers. Due to the minimum wage, new plants tended to start with fewer employees and to equip their employees with more capital. Finally, we find that the minimum wage led to higher labor productivity among entering plants." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2021 Elsevier) ((en))

Zitatform

Bailey, Martha J., John DiNardo & Bryan A. Stuart (2021): The Economic Impact of a High National Minimum Wage: Evidence from the 1966 Fair Labor Standards Act. In: Journal of labor economics, Jg. 39, H. S2, S. S329-S367. DOI:10.1086/712554

Abstract

"This paper examines the short- and longer-term economic effects of the 1966 Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which increased the national minimum wage to its highest level of the twentieth century and extended coverage to an additional 9.1 million workers. Exploiting differences in the “bite” of the minimum wage owing to regional variation in the standard of living and industry composition, this paper finds that the 1966 FLSA increased wages dramatically but reduced aggregate employment only modestly. However, some evidence shows that disemployment effects were significantly larger among African American men, 40% of whom earned below the new minimum wage." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Baumann, Arne (2021): What accounts for differences in minimum wage growth between EU member states? (baua: Preprint / Bundesanstalt für Arbeitsschutz und Arbeitsmedizin), Dortmund, 23 S. DOI:10.21934/baua:preprint20210506

Abstract

"Der Beitrag vergleicht auf Basis eines innovativen Datensatzes das Mindestlohnwachstum in 18 EU-Mitgliedsstaaten (ohne Deutschland) in den Jahren 2000-2017 und analysiert die Faktoren, die auf das Mindestlohnwachstum Einfluss nehmen. Dabei wird überprüft, ob Unterschiede beim Mindestlohnwachstum mit institutionellen Unterschieden zwischen den Ländern zusammenhängen oder eher von Unterschieden im Pro-Kopf-Einkommen der Länder herrühren. Zu den institutionellen Unterschieden gehören die für die Anpassung des Mindestlohns verantwortlichen Akteure (z. B. Regierung, Sozialpartner, Experten), aber auch länderspezifische Wirtschaftsstrukturen. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass sich die Mindestlohnanpassungen in West- und Osteuropa nicht nur im Umfang sondern auch hinsichtlich der institutionellen Einflüsse deutlich unterscheiden. Die Wachstumsraten in Osteuropa sind merklich höher als in Westeuropa. Ursächlich hierfür ist jedoch nicht der osteuropäische Aufholprozess beim Pro-Kopf-Einkommen, sondern sehr viel aktiveres Regierungshandeln im Vergleich zu Westeuropa. In Westeuropa zeigt sich dagegen ein Zusammenhang zwischen dem Mindestlohnwachstum und der Struktur der Wirtschaft. Je mehr das Wirtschaftswachstum von Exporten abhängt, desto schwächer fällt das Wachstum des Mindestlohns aus. Umgekehrt gilt, dass ein größerer Einfluss des Binnenkonsums auf das Wirtschaftswachstum mit einem höheren Wachstum des Mindestlohns einhergeht." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Bechlioulis, Alexandros & Michael Chletsos (2021): The differentiated effects of minimum wage reforms on unemployment Evidence from the Greek labor market. (MPRA paper / University Library of Munich 109327), München, 27 S.

Abstract

"The paper studies the relative effect between two groups, a treatment group of low-wage workers and a control group of high-wage workers, when a minimum wage reform is introduced. The empirical analysis uses a rich dataset from the Greek labor market over the period between 2010 and 2020. The study examines whether the employees' responses and the potential effects of two different minimum wage reforms on unemployment were heterogenous. Our results are straightforward: among the two groups, the relative possibility of job loss is associated with an increase in the minimum wage, while the relative possibility of job search difficulty is strongly affected by a minimum wage cut. The former result is getting worse for employees who engaged in a minimum wage-intensive sector in the previous year and are now inactive. The latter result is reinforced for very young workers." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Bezooijen, Emiel van, Wiljan van den Berge & Anna Salomons (2021): The Young Bunch: Youth Minimum Wages and Labor Market Outcomes. (CPB discussion paper / CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis 422), Den Haag, 53 S. DOI:10.34932/r1bs-x580

Abstract

"The 2017 increase in the Dutch youth minimum wage has improved labor market outcomes for low-paid young workers. In particular, these workers' average wage has risen with 4% without adverse effects on employment or hours worked. These are the key findings of new research on the impact of the minimum wage on labor market outcomes. Minimum wage increases were proposed by several political parties during the Dutch parliamentary elections of 2021, with the aim of increasing job quality in low-paid work. Minimum wages are also a topic of discussion internationally: the United States is witnessing an active campaign for raising minimum wages, and in other countries, such as Germany, minimum wages have recently been introduced or increased. Although many young workers are employed in low-paid jobs, only a relatively small group earns exactly the minimum wage: around 10% in the Netherlands. However, the Dutch minimum wage increase has also boosted incomes of low-paid young workers earning more than the minimum: these so-called spillovers account for 75% of the total wage increase. Further, labor market outcomes have improved most strongly for low-paid young full-time workers who are not enrolled in education: this is important as these workers are less likely to be transient occupants of low-paid jobs." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Burkhauser, Richard V. & Kevin Corinth (2021): The minimum wage versus the earned income tax credit for reducing povert. Enhancing the earned income tax credit would do more to reduce poverty, at less cost, than increasing the minimum wage. (IZA world of Labor 153,2), Bonn, 10 S. DOI:10.15185/izawol.153.v2

Abstract

"Minimum wage increases are not an effective mechanism for reducing poverty. And there is little causal evidence that they do so. Most workers who gain from minimum wage increases do not live in poor (or near-poor) families, while some who do live in poor families lose their job as a result of such increases. The earned income tax credit is an effective way to reduce poverty. It raises only the after-tax wage rates of workers in low- and moderate-income families, the tax credit increases with the number of dependent children, and evidence shows that it increases labor force participation and employment in these families." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Bíró, Anikó, Daniel Prinz & László Sándor (2021): The minimum wage, informal pay and tax enforcement. (IFS working paper / Institute for Fiscal Studies 2021,41), London, 77 S.

Abstract

"We study the taxation of the minimum wage in an environment with imperfect enforcement and informality. We leverage an increase in the audit threat for earnings below a reporting threshold at twice the minimum wage in Hungary and estimate reporting and employment responses with administrative panel data. Using bunching estimators and difference-in-differences methods, we show that a substantial share of those who report earning the minimum wage earn at least the same amount off the books. When enforcement is imperfect, a taxed minimum wage serves as a backstop on underreporting and recovers some revenue but also increases informality." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))