Mindestlohn
Seit Inkrafttreten des Mindestlohngesetzes am 1. Januar 2015 gilt ein allgemeingültiger flächendeckender Mindestlohn in Deutschland. Lohnuntergrenzen gibt es in beinahe allen europäischen Staaten und den USA. Die Mindestlohn-Gesetze haben das Ziel, Lohn-Dumping, also die nicht verhältnismäßige Bezahlung von Arbeitnehmerinnen und Arbeitnehmern, zu verhindern.
Dieses Themendossier dokumentiert die Diskussion rund um die Einführung des flächendeckenden Mindestlohns in Deutschland und die Ergebnisse empirischer Forschung der zu flächendeckenden und branchenspezifischen Mindestlöhnen. Mit dem Filter „Autorenschaft“ können Sie auf IAB-(Mit-)Autorenschaft eingrenzen.
- Grundsätzliches zum flächendeckenden Mindestlohn
- Auswirkungen des flächendeckenden Mindestlohns auf
- Auswirkungen des flächendeckenden Mindestlohns auf Personengruppen
- Ausnahmen vom flächendeckenden Mindestlohn u.a. für
- Ausweichreaktionen auf Mindestlöhne in Deutschland
- Bundesländer
- Branchenspezifische Mindestlöhne und deren Auswirkungen auf
- Mindestlohn in anderen Ländern
-
Literaturhinweis
Minimum wage effects: adjustment through labour market dynamics and alternative work arrangements: A report for the Low Pay Commission (2025)
Albagli, Pinjas; Costa, Rui; Machin, Stephen;Zitatform
Albagli, Pinjas, Rui Costa & Stephen Machin (2025): Minimum wage effects: adjustment through labour market dynamics and alternative work arrangements. A report for the Low Pay Commission. (CEP report 49), London: Centre for Economic Performance, LSE, 96 S.
Abstract
"This report investigates the UK's 2016 National Living Wage (NLW) introduction, focusing on firm adjustment through labour market transitions and job contract amendments. The NLW boosted worker wages, and whilst there was no change in total employment, firms adjusted through changes in employment composition and by altering employment contracts. The NLW spurred increased transitions from temporary to permanent roles, reduced underemployment, and shifted workers away from non-standard arrangements like part-time roles. However, a modest rise in zero-hour contracts among exposed workers reflects the nuanced nature of these adjustments. These contract changes, and shifts in composition and transition dynamics, provide insights into ways in which employers adjustment to cost shocks induced by minimum wage increases, and how at the same time they maintain employment stability and reshape within-firm job and career structures." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Payroll Tax Reductions on Low Wages and Minimum Wage in France (2025)
Zitatform
Albertini, Julien, Arthur Poirier & Anthony Terriau (2025): Payroll Tax Reductions on Low Wages and Minimum Wage in France. (Working paper / GATE Lyon Saint-Étienne 202501), Lyon ; Saint-Étienne, 44 S.
Abstract
"Introduced in France in the 1990s to reduce the cost of low-skilled labor, payroll tax reductions on low wages were later expanded and extended to higher wages. This study evaluates the impact of the current payroll tax schedule on employment, fiscal surplus, and welfare. We develop a life-cycle matching model in which workers are heterogeneous in terms of age, education, human capital, family status, hours worked and idiosyncratic productivity, and where search effort, hiring and separations are endogenous. Accounting for interactions with the socio-fiscal system, we demonstrate that reducing payroll tax cuts for low wages would result in declines in both employment and fiscal surplus. Furthermore, we show that increasing the minimum wage would significantly reduce employment and fiscal surplus, with the magnitude of the effect depending on whether the payroll tax schedule and other socio-fiscal measures are indexed to the minimum wage. Lastly, we identify the optimal payroll tax schedule, revealing that employment, fiscal surplus, and welfare can all be improved by increasing payroll tax reductions for wages near the minimum wage while reducing them for wages exceeding twice the minimum wage." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
What Explains Differences in Minimum Wage Growth Between EU Member States? (2025)
Zitatform
Baumann, Arne (2025): What Explains Differences in Minimum Wage Growth Between EU Member States? In: Jahrbücher für Nationalökonomie und Statistik, Jg. 245, H. 1/2, S. 7-44. DOI:10.1515/jbnst-2023-0039
Abstract
"There are considerable differences in minimum wage growth between EU member states with national minimum wages. Potential sources for these differences are discrepancies in economic fundamentals and institutional differences in how minimum wages are adjusted. Using a novel dataset based on macroeconomic data, institutional information on minimum wage setting and data on economic policy orientation and elections, the article tests whether growth differences in the minimum wage of 21 EU member states during the time period 2000 to 2020 can be explained by a catch-up dynamic in new EU member states, by different growth models of EU member states or by differences in the actors that are responsible for the adjustment of minimum wages. The results show that across the entire sample and irrespective of actors, minimum wage growth follows consumer price inflation and wage growth most closely. Higher than average minimum wage growth rates in EU member states stem from overshooting inflation during the period of EU accession, reducing wage inequality and increasing the Kaitz index. Actors also mattered for minimum wage growth. Adjustments by social partner consensus led to higher minimum wage growth than the benchmark of indexed minimum wages, introducing a distributive element to minimum wage adjustments." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Minimum Wages, Efficiency, and Welfare (2025)
Zitatform
Berger, David, Kyle Herkenhoff & Simon Mongey (2025): Minimum Wages, Efficiency, and Welfare. In: Econometrica, Jg. 93, H. 1, S. 265-301. DOI:10.3982/ecta21466
Abstract
"Many argue that minimum wages can prevent efficiency losses from monopsony power. We assess this argument in a general equilibrium model of oligopsonistic labor markets with heterogeneous workers and firms. We decompose welfare gains into an efficiency component that captures reductions in monopsony power and a redistributive component that captures the way minimum wages shift resources across people. The minimum wage that maximizes the efficiency component of welfare lies below $8.00 and yields gains worth less than 0.2% of lifetime consumption. When we add back in Utilitarian redistributive motives, the optimal minimum wage is $11 and redistribution accounts for 102.5% of the resulting welfare gains, implying offsetting efficiency losses of −2.5%. The reason a minimum wage struggles to deliver efficiency gains is that with realistic firm productivity dispersion, a minimum wage that eliminates monopsony power at one firm causes severe rationing at another. These results hold under an EITC and progressive labor income taxes calibrated to the U.S. economy." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Using post-regularization distribution regression to measure the effects of a minimum wage on hourly wages, hours worked and monthly earnings (2025)
Zitatform
Biewen, Martin & Pascal Erhardt (2025): Using post-regularization distribution regression to measure the effects of a minimum wage on hourly wages, hours worked and monthly earnings. In: The econometrics journal. DOI:10.1093/ectj/utaf014
Abstract
"We evaluate the distributional effects of a minimum wage introduction based on a data set with a moderate sample size but a large number of potential covariates. In this context, the selection of relevant control variables at each distributional threshold is crucial to test hypotheses about the impact of the continuous treatment variable. To this end, we use the post-double selection logistic distribution regression approach proposed by Belloni et al. (2018a), which allows for uniformly valid inference about the target coefficients of our low-dimensional treatment variables across the entire outcome distribution. Our empirical results show that the minimum wage replaced hourly wages below the minimum threshold, increased monthly earnings in the lower-middle segment but not at the very bottom of the distribution, and did not significantly affect the distribution of working hours." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Minimum Wages and Poverty: New Evidence from Dynamic Difference-in-Differences Estimates (2025)
Zitatform
Burkhauser, Richard V., Drew McNichols & Joseph J. Sabia (2025): Minimum Wages and Poverty: New Evidence from Dynamic Difference-in-Differences Estimates. In: The Review of Economics and Statistics, S. 1-53. DOI:10.1162/rest_a_01590
Abstract
"This study re-examines Dube (2019), which finds large and statistically significant poverty-reducing effects of the minimum wage. We show that his estimated elasticities are fragile and sensitive to (1) time period under study, (2) choice of macroeconomic controls, (3) limiting counterfactuals to geographically proximate states (“close controls”), which poorly match treatment states' pre-treatment poverty trends, and (4) accounting for potential bias caused by heterogeneous and dynamic treatment effects. Using data spanning nearly four decades from the March Current Population Survey and a dynamic difference-in-differences (DiD) 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. Our null results persist across a variety of DiD estimation strategies, including two-way fixed effects, stacked DiD, Callaway and Sant'Anna, and synthetic DiD. We conclude that, to date, the preponderance of evidence suggests that minimum wage increases are an ineffective policy strategy for alleviating poverty." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © MIT Press Journals) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Analysepotenziale von OnlineStellenanzeigen und Methoden Maschinellen Lernens am Beispiel der Mindestlohnforschung: Hat der Mindestlohn die Nachfrage von Kompetenzen durch Arbeitgeber verändert? (2025)
Busch, Anne; Krieger, Benedikt; Krusee, Sebastian; Goluchowicz, Kerstin; Baumann, Fabienne-Agnes;Zitatform
Busch, Anne, Fabienne-Agnes Baumann, Benedikt Krieger, Kerstin Goluchowicz & Sebastian Krusee (2025): Analysepotenziale von OnlineStellenanzeigen und Methoden Maschinellen Lernens am Beispiel der Mindestlohnforschung. Hat der Mindestlohn die Nachfrage von Kompetenzen durch Arbeitgeber verändert? (iit Perspektive / Institut für Innovation und Technik 80), Berlin, 17 S. DOI:10.23776/2025_09
Abstract
"Diese iit-perspektive beleuchtet das Potenzial innovativer Datenzugänge (Online-Stellenanzeigen) und Analysemethoden (Methoden des maschinellen Lernens) für sozialwissenschaftliche Fragestellungen am Beispiel der Mindestlohnforschung. So ist es mit Online-Stellenanzeigen als Datengrundlage beispielsweise möglich zu untersuchen, inwieweit die Einführung bzw. Erhöhung des Mindestlohns die von Arbeitgebern geforderten beruflichen Kompetenzen verändert hat." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)
-
Literaturhinweis
Minimum wage and employment in the U.S.: an application of Bayesian quantile kink regression (2025)
Zitatform
Chan, Marc K. & Akbar Zamanzadeh (2025): Minimum wage and employment in the U.S.: an application of Bayesian quantile kink regression. In: Econometric Reviews, Jg. 44, H. 6, S. 673-695. DOI:10.1080/07474938.2025.2451339
Abstract
"We examine whether the employment effects of minimum wage depend on unknown tipping points in the labor market. We apply a continuous threshold regression model—regression kink with unknown thresholds—to U.S. state-level panel data in 1993–2016 to estimate the tipping point and quantile employment effects. Overall, we find that the marginal effect is near-zero or mildly negative below the tipping point, and it is considerably more negative above it. The tipping occurs at 50–55% of the state’s median wage among women and 40–45% among men. Simulations of minimum wage reforms reveal nonlinear and asymmetric employment effects." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
The eterogeneous Effects of Large and Small Minimum Wage Changes: Evidence Using a Partially Pre-Committed Analysis Plan (2025)
Zitatform
Clemens, Jeffrey & Michael Strain (2025): The eterogeneous Effects of Large and Small Minimum Wage Changes: Evidence Using a Partially Pre-Committed Analysis Plan. In: Journal of labor economics. DOI:10.1086/736552
Abstract
"This paper advances the use of partially pre-committed analysis plans in non-experimental research settings. In a study of recent minimum wage changes, we demonstrate how analyses of longer-run impacts of policy interventions can be pre-specified as extensions to very short-run analyses. Further, our pre-analysis plan includes comparisons of the effects of large vs.small minimum wage increases, which is a theoretically motivated dimension ofheterogeneity. We discuss how these use cases harness the strengths of pre-analysis planswhile mitigating their weaknesses. This project’s initial analyses explored CPS and ACS datafrom 2011 through 2015. Alongside these analyses, we pre-committed to analysesincorporating CPS and ACS data extending through 2019. Averaging across thespecifications in our pre-analysis plan, we estimate that relatively large minimum wage increases reduced employment rates among individuals with low levels of experience andeducation by just over 2 and a half percentage points during the decade prior to the onset ofthe Covid-19 pandemic. Our estimates of the effects of relatively small minimum wage increases vary across data sets and specifications but are, on average, both economically and statistically indistinguishable from zero. We estimate that the elasticity of employment with respect to the minimum wage is substantially more negative for large minimum wage increases than for small increases." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
The Heterogeneous Effects of Large and Small Minimum Wage Changes on Hours Worked: Evidence Using a Partially Pre-Committed Analysis Plan (2025)
Zitatform
Clemens, Jeffrey & Michael R. Strain (2025): The Heterogeneous Effects of Large and Small Minimum Wage Changes on Hours Worked: Evidence Using a Partially Pre-Committed Analysis Plan. (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 17913), Bonn, 69 S.
Abstract
"In a study of recent minimum wage changes (Clemens and Strain, forthcoming), we demonstrate how analyses of longer-run impacts of policy interventions can be pre-specified as extensions to very short-run analyses. This paper uses this novel methodology to study the effects of minimum wage increases on hours worked. Analyzing CPS and ACS data with the empirical specifications from our partially pre-committed analysis plan, we estimate that relatively large minimum wage increases reduced usual hours worked per week among individuals with low levels of experience and education by just under one hour per week during the decade prior to the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. Our estimates of the effects of relatively small minimum wage increases vary across data sets and specifications but are, on average, both economically and statistically indistinguishable from zero. We estimate that the elasticity of hours worked with respect to the minimum wage is substantially more negative for large minimum wage increases than for small increases." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Divergent Paths: Differential Impacts of Minimum Wage Increases on Individuals with Disabilities (2025)
Zitatform
Clemens, Jeffrey, Melissa D. Gentry & Jonathan Meer (2025): Divergent Paths: Differential Impacts of Minimum Wage Increases on Individuals with Disabilities. (NBER working paper / National Bureau of Economic Research 33437), Cambridge, Mass, 39 S.
Abstract
"We analyze the differential effects of minimum wage increases on individuals with disabilities using data from the American Community Survey and leveraging state-level minimum wage variation during the 2010s. We find that large minimum wage increases significantly reduce employment and labor force participation for individuals of all working ages with severe disabilities. These declines are accompanied by a downward shift in the wage distribution and an increase in public assistance receipt. By contrast, we find no employment effects for all but young individuals with either non-severe disabilities or no disabilities. Our findings highlight important heterogeneities in minimum wage impacts, raising concerns about labor market policies' unintended consequences for populations on the margins of the labor force." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
The Heterogeneous Effects of Large and Small Minimum Wage Changes: Evidence Using a Partially Pre-Committed Analysis Plan (2025)
Zitatform
Clemens, Jeffrey & Michael Strain (2025): The Heterogeneous Effects of Large and Small Minimum Wage Changes: Evidence Using a Partially Pre-Committed Analysis Plan. In: Journal of labor economics. DOI:10.1086/736552
Abstract
"This paper advances the use of partially pre-committed analysis plans in non-experimental research settings. In a study of recent minimum wage changes, we demonstrate how analyses of longer-run impacts of policy interventions can be pre-specified as extensions to very short-run analyses. Further, our pre-analysis plan includes comparisons of the effects of large vs.small minimum wage increases, which is a theoretically motivated dimension of heterogeneity. We discuss how these use cases harness the strengths of pre-analysis planswhile mitigating their weaknesses. This project’s initial analyses explored CPS and ACS datafrom 2011 through 2015. Alongside these analyses, we pre-committed to analyses in corporating CPS and ACS data extending through 2019. Averaging across the specifications in our pre-analysis plan, we estimate that relatively large minimum wage increases reduced employment rates among individuals with low levels of experience and education by just over 2 and a half percentage points during the decade prior to the onset ofthe Covid-19 pandemic. Our estimates of the effects of relatively small minimum wage increases vary across data sets and specifications but are, on average, both economically andstatistically indistinguishable from zero. We estimate that the elasticity of employment with respect to the minimum wage is substantially more negative for large minimum wage increases than for small increases." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Minimum Wages and Human Capital Investment: A Meta‐Regression Analysis (2025)
Zitatform
Doucouliagos, Hristos & Katarina Zigova (2025): Minimum Wages and Human Capital Investment: A Meta‐Regression Analysis. In: BJIR, S. 1-20. DOI:10.1111/bjir.12881
Abstract
"We apply meta-regression analysis to assess the effect of the minimum wage on two types of human capital, formal education enrolment and on-the-job training, using 892 reported estimates of these effects. On average, raising the minimum wage reduces enrolment in all countries assessed. The minimum wage has a somewhat moderate positive effect on training in the United States and no significant training effect elsewhere. There is no publication bias in the formal education and modest bias in the training literature. Heterogeneity among reported estimates is primarily driven by data differences, alternative specifications and measures of the relevant variables." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Does organizational context matter? An examination of the factors influencing employees’ judgments of minimum wage increases (2025)
Zitatform
Dütsch, Matthias, Monika Senghaas, Gesine Stephan & Olaf Struck (2025): Does organizational context matter? An examination of the factors influencing employees’ judgments of minimum wage increases. In: Journal for labour market research, Jg. 59, 2025-02-10. DOI:10.1186/s12651-025-00392-3
Abstract
"This article presents novel findings on company factors that determine judgments regarding the fairness of minimum wage increases. Drawing on minimum wage and organizational justice research, we conducted a factorial survey among German employees. It seems that the internal wage structure plays a crucial role because raising only the pay of minimum wage workers and not that of other employees causes a minimum wage increase to be rated as less fair. While a hiring freeze does not negatively influence fairness judgments, layoffs do. Finally, if a minimum wage increase adversely affects a company’s economic situation, respondents assess it as less fair." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
The Minimum Wage in Germany: Institutional Setting and a Systematic Review of Key Findings (2025)
Zitatform
Dütsch, Matthias, Clemens Ohlert & Arne Baumann (2025): The Minimum Wage in Germany: Institutional Setting and a Systematic Review of Key Findings. In: Jahrbücher für Nationalökonomie und Statistik, Jg. 245, H. 1-2, S. 113-151. DOI:10.1515/jbnst-2023-0038
Abstract
"The introduction of a statutory minimum wage in Germany in 2015 aimed at improving the welfare of low-wage workers but was also accompanied by concerns about distortions in Europe’s largest economy. This paper provides a comprehensive survey of results from the evaluation of the German minimum wage by compiling recent descriptive evidence and a systematic literature review on causal effects through 2022. On 1 October 2022, the minimum wage was raised legislatively by 15 percent to 12 euros per hour, which affected approximately 5.8 million employees and 23 percent of companies. The war in Ukraine and the coronavirus pandemic hit minimum wage workers and minimum wage firms harder than the rest of the economy. The minimum wage thus far had the strongest causal effects directly after its introduction. Hourly wages increased, while working hours decreased, resulting in mixed effects on monthly wages. Overall employment fell slightly, with a decline in marginal employment in particular. Companies’ wage costs increased, and as productivity did not change, profits declined." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © De Gruyter) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Informal Incentives and Labour Markets (2025)
Fahn, Matthias; Murooka, Takeshi;Zitatform
Fahn, Matthias & Takeshi Murooka (2025): Informal Incentives and Labour Markets. In: The Economic Journal, Jg. 135, H. 665, S. 144-179. DOI:10.1093/ej/ueae063
Abstract
"This paper investigates how labor-market tightness affects market outcomes if firms use informal, self-enforcing, agreements to motivate workers. We characterize profit-maximising equilibria and show that an increase in the supply of homogeneous workers can increase wages. Moreover, even though all workers are identical in terms of skills or productivity, profit-maximising discrimination equilibria exist. There, a group of majority workers is paid higher wages than a group of minority workers, who may even be completely excluded. Minimum wages can reduce such discrimination and increase employment. We discuss how these results relate to empirical evidence on downward wage rigidity, immigration, the gender pay gap, and credentialism." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Basic Income and the Dynamics of Employment and Human Capital in a Non-Urban Disadvantaged Setting (2025)
García, Jorge Luis; Watson, L. Reed; Warren, Patrick L.;Zitatform
García, Jorge Luis, Patrick L. Warren & L. Reed Watson (2025): Basic Income and the Dynamics of Employment and Human Capital in a Non-Urban Disadvantaged Setting. (NBER working paper / National Bureau of Economic Research 33891), Cambridge, Mass, 54 S.
Abstract
"Why and when could basic income inhibit employment? We randomize 200 dollars of basic income per month for two years within a non-urban disadvantaged sample tracked using high-frequency administrative data. The amount provided is 21% of average all-source income. In the short term (0.5 years after baseline), relative to the control group, treatment-group employment decreases by 58%, average all-source income remains constant, and health-investment rates increase. In the longer term (1.25 years after baseline), employment and health-investment rates revert to their control-group counterparts. Treatment participants receive basic income, take time off work, address health needs, and, subsequently, reintegrate into employment." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
"Und ewig grüßt das Murmeltier": Mindestlohnforschung im Denkstilzwang (2025)
Zitatform
Heise, Arne (2025): "Und ewig grüßt das Murmeltier": Mindestlohnforschung im Denkstilzwang. (Discussion papers / Zentrum für Ökonomische und Soziologische Studien 116), Hamburg, 23 S.
Abstract
"Vor Einführung eines flächendeckenden Mindestlohns in Deutschland im Jahr 2015 war sich die Arbeitsmarktökonomik weitgehend darin einig, dass dieses 'soziale Experiment' mit erheblichen Arbeitsplatzverlusten bezahlt werden müsste. Die Begleitforschung zur Mindestlohneinführung konnte dann aber die prognostizierten Beschäftigungsverluste nicht nachweisen und musste auch für Deutschland - wie überall, wo Mindestlöhne existieren und deren Effekte erforscht werden - die 'Flüchtigkeit der Beschäftigungseffekt' zugeben. In diesem Beitrag wird die Diskussion um die Einführung des Mindestlohns nachgezeichnet und die Reaktion der Wissenschaftlergemeinschaft auf die Abweichung der tatsächlichen Beschäftigungsentwicklung von den modellgestützten Prognosen - was wissenschaftstheoretisch als 'Anomalie' oder 'Krise' verstanden werden kann - auf der Grundlage der Fleckschen Denkstil-Theorie analysiert. Dazu werden 2 Phasen - die Phase der Einführung des Mindestlohns und die Phase der drastischen Erhöhung des Mindestlohns im Jahr 2022 - unterschieden, um einerseits Lernprozesse, andererseits aber auch die Resilienz eines herrschenden Paradigmas untersuchen zu können." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)
-
Literaturhinweis
Do minimum wage increases induce changes in work behavior for people with disabilities? Evidence from the AbilityOne program (2025)
Zitatform
Kim, Jiyoon, Michael Levere & Ellen Magenheim (2025): Do minimum wage increases induce changes in work behavior for people with disabilities? Evidence from the AbilityOne program. In: Labour Economics, Jg. 92. DOI:10.1016/j.labeco.2024.102663
Abstract
"We provide the first evidence on the effects of minimum wage increases on labor market outcomes for people with disabilities. We use a novel dataset consisting of quarterly data on employment, earnings, and hours for workers at nonprofit firms that participate in the federal AbilityOne program. The nonprofits in this program are offered advantages in government contracting, though must primarily employ workers with disabilities. Using recent local variation in minimum wage changes, we find that increasing the minimum wage does not affect employment outcomes for workers with disabilities in this specific context, with precisely estimated null effects. However, these nonprofits respond along non-employment related margins after relatively large minimum wage increases." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
The unintended effects of a large minimum wage increase on health: Evidence from South Korea (2025)
Zitatform
Kim, Jung Hyun, Marc Suhrcke & Anja K. Leist (2025): The unintended effects of a large minimum wage increase on health: Evidence from South Korea. In: Social Science & Medicine, Jg. 365. DOI:10.1016/j.socscimed.2024.117626
Abstract
"The 2018 minimum wage increase in South Korea was a major policy change that impacted employment and labour productivity, but its effects on health have not yet been explored. The minimum wage was increased by 16.4% in January 2018, marking the largest increase over two decades and a substantial increase by international standards. While this policy change was a promise of the then-new government, the magnitude of its increase was unexpected. Using a difference-in-differences design with data from the 2016 and 2018 Korean Longitudinal Study on Aging, this study focuses on individuals targeted by the minimum wage policy, particularly older adults earning the minimum wage. Unexpectedly, our results indicate a statistically significant decrease in cognitive function within the targeted group, following the minimum wage hike. However, we did not observe any significant changes in self-reported health. Importantly, for the period 2014 and 2016, when the minimum wage increase was relatively modest, we found positive effects on cognitive health and no negative effects on self-reported health, suggesting that negative effects on cognition emerged only with the large minimum wage increase in 2018. These perhaps unexpected findings may be explained by a significant reduction in the working hours of the targeted group." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2024 TheAuthors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
The politics of the minimum wage: Explaining introduction and levels (2025)
Zitatform
Kozák, Michal & Georg Picot (2025): The politics of the minimum wage: Explaining introduction and levels. In: BJIR, Jg. 63, H. 1, S. 161-179. DOI:10.1111/bjir.12836
Abstract
"There is much economics research on the effects of minimum wages, but little research on their politics. Yet, ever more advanced capitalist democracies have introduced minimum wages, and the setting of minimum wage levels has become increasingly politicized. This article is the first comprehensive study of the politics of the minimum wage: We analyse the determinants of adopting minimum wages as well as what explains variation in their levels over time, based on a dataset of 33 OECD countries from 1960 to 2017. We find that the decline in collective bargaining is the main driving force behind the introduction of ever more minimum wages. At the same time, left-wing parties in government are most likely to adopt a minimum wage when bargaining coverage is low. Left governments are also associated with higher minimum wages, especially when the government has full control over level-setting." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Regelbasierte statt politische Mindestlohnanpassung: Schriftliche Stellungnahme zur fünften Anhörung zu den Auswirkungen des gesetzlichen Mindestlohns (2025)
Lesch, Hagen; Schröder, Christoph;Zitatform
Lesch, Hagen & Christoph Schröder (2025): Regelbasierte statt politische Mindestlohnanpassung. Schriftliche Stellungnahme zur fünften Anhörung zu den Auswirkungen des gesetzlichen Mindestlohns. (IW-Report / Institut der Deutschen Wirtschaft Köln 2025,10), Köln, 18 S.
Abstract
"Der gesetzliche Mindestlohn wurde bis einschließlich Juli 2022 durch die Mindestlohnkommission gemäß § 9 Abs. 2 Satz 2 Mindestlohngesetz (MiLoG) und gemäß § 3 Abs. 1 Satz 2 der Geschäftsordnung der Mindestlohnkommission (GO-MLK) vom 27. Januar 2016 nachlaufend an die Tariflohnentwicklung angepasst." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)
-
Literaturhinweis
10 Jahre Mindestlohn: Bilanz und Ausblick: Gemeinsame Stellungnahme von WSI und IMK anlässlich der schriftlichen Anhörung der Mindestlohnkommission 2025 (2025)
Zitatform
Lübker, Malte, Thorsten Schulten & Alexander Herzog-Stein (2025): 10 Jahre Mindestlohn: Bilanz und Ausblick. Gemeinsame Stellungnahme von WSI und IMK anlässlich der schriftlichen Anhörung der Mindestlohnkommission 2025. (WSI Policy Brief / Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaftliches Institut 88), Düsseldorf, 42 S.
Abstract
"In der folgenden Stellungnahme soll die Entwicklung des Mindestlohns im Lichte der hier diskutierten Orientierungsgrößen analysiert werden. Dazu zählen die Tarifentwicklung (Abschnitt 2), der Referenzwert von 60 % des Bruttomedianlohns der Vollzeitbeschäftigten (Abschnitt 3) sowie die weiteren Kriterien aus Artikel 5 (4) der Europäischen Mindestlohnrichtlinie (Abschnitt 4). Auf Grundlage dieser Analyse wird in einem kurzen Fazit der Rahmen für zukünftige Mindestlohnerhöhungen abgesteckt (Abschnitt 5)." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)
-
Literaturhinweis
WSI-Mindestlohnbericht 2025: Neuorientierung der Mindestlohnpolitik führt zu realer Aufwertung (2025)
Lübker, Malte; Schulten, Thorsten;Zitatform
Lübker, Malte & Thorsten Schulten (2025): WSI-Mindestlohnbericht 2025. Neuorientierung der Mindestlohnpolitik führt zu realer Aufwertung. (WSI-Report 100), Düsseldorf, 19 S.
Abstract
"Auch in diesem Jahr setzt sich der Trend zu deutlichen nominalen Mindestlohnerhöhungen fort. Angesichts rückläufiger Inflationsraten führt dies in den meisten Ländern Europas zu kräftigen Kaufkraftzuwächsen für Mindestlohnempfänger*innen. Hintergrund ist die Umsetzung der Europäischen Mindestlohnrichtlinie, die in vielen Ländern zu einer Neuorientierung der Mindestlohnpolitik geführt hat und so die Dynamik der Mindestlöhne beflügelt. Die meisten EU-Länder folgen nun den in der Richtlinie verankerten Referenzwerten für angemessene Mindestlöhne, die bei 60 % des Medianlohns bzw. 50 % des Durchschnittslohns liegen. Damit auch Deutschland den Schritt zu einem angemessenen Mindestlohn macht, ist allerdings nach wie vor eine strukturelle Erhöhung notwendig." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)
-
Literaturhinweis
WSI-Mindestlohnbericht 2025: Neuorientierung der Mindestlohnpolitik führt zu realer Aufwertung (2025)
Lübker, Malte; Schulten, Thorsten;Zitatform
Lübker, Malte & Thorsten Schulten (2025): WSI-Mindestlohnbericht 2025. Neuorientierung der Mindestlohnpolitik führt zu realer Aufwertung. In: WSI-Mitteilungen, Jg. 78, H. 2, S. 108-121. DOI:10.5771/0342-300x-2025-2-108
Abstract
"Auf Basis von Daten für 38 Länder in Europa und Übersee analysiert der diesjährige WSI-Mindestlohnbericht die Entwicklung der Mindestlöhne zum Stichtag 1. Januar 2025. Innerhalb der Europäischen Union hat sich das nominale Wachstum der Mindestlöhne zwar etwas abgeschwächt, lag mit 6,2 % im Median aber weiterhin verhältnismäßig hoch. Aufgrund rückgängiger Inflationsraten verblieb nach der Preisbereinigung mit 3,8 % im Median aber ein stärkeres Realwachstum als in den Vorjahren. Getragen wird die Entwicklung insbesondere von den osteuropäischen EU-Ländern. Der WSI-Mindestlohnbericht führt die Entwicklung auf eine Neuorientierung der nationalen Mindestlohnpolitiken im Zuge der Umsetzung der Europäischen Mindestlohnrichtlinie zurück. Wie der Bericht zeigt, sind die dort verankerten Schwellenwerte für einen angemessenen Mindestlohn von 60 % des Median- und 50 % des Durchschnittslohns inzwischen in vielen Ländern als Zielvorgaben übernommen worden." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)
-
Literaturhinweis
Does aging matter in the impact of the minimum wage on inflation? (2025)
Zitatform
Majchrowska, Aleksandra & Sylwia Roszkowska (2025): Does aging matter in the impact of the minimum wage on inflation? (MPRA paper / University Library of Munich 123506), München, 17 S.
Abstract
"We examine how demographic changes impact the transmission of minimum wage increases to inflation. The minimum wage growth can raise the prices of goods and services and accelerate inflationary processes. At the same time, a shrinking workforce and changes in its structure could lead to changes in the impact of minimum wage increases on the economy. We use the minimum wage augmented Phillips curve framework extended with the demographic variables. We employ the sample of 21 European Union countries in 2003-2023 and panel data techniques. Our study proves that the strength of the minimum wage pass-through effects on inflation depends on demographic factors. Aging of the workforce and shrinking workforce size weakens the impact of minimum wage increase on inflation. Contrary, a lower proportion of the less educated working-age population strengthens the minimum wage pass-through effects on inflation. Our results have important implications for macroeconomic, minimum wage, and education policies." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Minimum Wage Laws and Job Search (2025)
Zitatform
Melo, Vitor C., Christopher Kaiser, David Neumark, Liya Palagashvili & Michael D. Farren (2025): Minimum Wage Laws and Job Search. (NBER working paper / National Bureau of Economic Research 33433), Cambridge, Mass, 37 S.
Abstract
"A large theoretical literature on job search predicts that a higher minimum wage will increase the number of job seekers for affected jobs, which can lead to more job creation and higher employment. This paper uses novel data on job search in all U.S. states to examine the effect of minimum wage increases on the number of job seekers for low-skilled positions. We find no evidence that higher minimum wages increase job search for low-skilled jobs. Instead, the evidence suggests that higher minimum wages decrease the number of workers seeking employment." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Employment effects of minimum wage indexing: Establishment evidence from Oregon restaurants (2025)
Zitatform
Miller, Stephen, Gary A. Wagner & Alicia Plemmons (2025): Employment effects of minimum wage indexing: Establishment evidence from Oregon restaurants. In: Economic Inquiry, S. 1-34. DOI:10.1111/ecin.13284
Abstract
"Though 18 states will index their minimum wage to the Consumer Price Index by 2025, few studies have examined indexing's differential employment effects. Leveraging a period of stability in minimum wages (2000–2007) and two distinct national geocoded databases of establishments, we explore how indexing affected employment in Oregon restaurants, one of the earliest indexing states (2003). Nearest-neighbor matching is used as a preprocessing step before regression, pairing individual restaurants in Oregon to restaurants with similar characteristics in states where the minimum wage was unchanged. We find evidence that establishment employment falls 3.6% after indexing, implying an employment elasticity of −0.18." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Minimum Wage and Effects on Unemployment: The Case of Spain and Its Implications on Simpson’s Paradox and Geographical Mobility (2025)
Monray, Jorge; Morillo, Juan;Zitatform
Monray, Jorge & Juan Morillo (2025): Minimum Wage and Effects on Unemployment: The Case of Spain and Its Implications on Simpson’s Paradox and Geographical Mobility. In: International journal of economics and finance, Jg. 17, H. 2, S. 26-44. DOI:10.5539/ijef.v17n2p26
Abstract
"This research explains the effects of the Government’s regular increases in the minimum wages on unemployment in Spain. Using a longitudinal analysis covering the years 2010 to 2023 the research collects data split by gender, age group, and Autonomous Community (AC). The data has been adjusted calculating the minimum wage Mean and Mode values. A negative or inverse correlation between minimum wage variables and unemployment is observed presenting Pearson values between -0.4 and -0.6 in most groups. Also, the research applies a one-way ANOVA test. It shows findings of unemployment reduction, specifically in the categories of young males, even though, the minimum wage in Spain has been regularly increased during the last years, in line with other authors. The aggregated and disaggregated data obtained vary and move in opposite directions confirming in a certain way that the principle of the Simpson’s Paradox could take place here. The research also confirms a relevant Estimated Size Effect (ETA) when comparing Autonomous Communities and their influence on unemployment for 55+ years old people." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
The Minimum Wage in Greece: A Review of Institutional Features, Developments and Effects Between 1975 and 2023 (2025)
Zitatform
Nicolitsas, Daphne (2025): The Minimum Wage in Greece: A Review of Institutional Features, Developments and Effects Between 1975 and 2023. In: Jahrbücher für Nationalökonomie und Statistik, Jg. 245, H. 1-2, S. 79-111. DOI:10.1515/jbnst-2023-0041
Abstract
"This paper takes a historical perspective and assesses the evolution of the institutional features in setting the minimum wage in Greece between 1975 and 2023. It also evaluates developments regarding the minimum wage level, its bite and alignment with productivity. The paper reviews the limited available empirical literature on the association of the minimum wage with labour market outcomes (average wages, employment, inequality). It presents new estimates of the elasticity of average wages to the minimum wage. One of the paper’s key points is that the minimum wage setting mechanism has changed over time as the economic environment has changed. Reviewing the evolution of the minimum wage over time to evaluate whether the minimum wage follows productivity developments and whether the minimum wage bites leads to the second and third takeaways of the paper. The minimum wage follows productivity developments over the longer term but not always in the short term. The bite of the minimum wage is high and appears to be higher when government intervention in setting the minimum wage is stronger. As for the impact of the minimum wage on average wages, the new estimates of the elasticity of the average to the minimum wage the paper provides, use more precisely measured wage rates, which show a high elasticity of average to minimum wages. Finally, the review of the existing literature on the employment effects of the minimum wage shows that, as in other countries, the results are mixed with modest negative or no effects." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © De Gruyter) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Effects of the German Minimum Wage on Earnings and Working Time Using Establishment Data (2025)
Zitatform
Ohlert, Clemens (2025): Effects of the German Minimum Wage on Earnings and Working Time Using Establishment Data. In: Jahrbücher für Nationalökonomie und Statistik, Jg. 245, H. 1-2, S. 185-213. DOI:10.1515/jbnst-2024-0025
Abstract
"Diese Studie untersucht die Auswirkungen der Einführung des gesetzlichen Mindestlohns in Deutschland auf Stundenlöhne, Monatslöhne und bezahlte Arbeitszeiten. Es wird ein auf der Verdienststrukturerhebung (VSE) 2014 und der Verdiensterhebung (VSE) 2015 basierender Paneldatensatz genutzt und ein Differenz-in-Differenzen-Ansatz auf Betriebsebene angewendet. Die Vorteile und Grenzen dieses Ansatzes werden im Vergleich zu früheren Studien erörtert. Die Ergebnisse deuten auf einen Effekt der Einführung des gesetzlichen Mindestlohns auf die Stundenlöhne von etwa 13 Prozent hin. Aufgrund negativer Effekte auf die Arbeitszeit von etwa minus 6 Prozent sind die Auswirkungen auf den monatlichen Bruttoverdienst geringer, betragen aber immer noch etwa 8 Prozent. Der Mindestlohn hat vor allem bei Geringverdienern in Teilzeitbeschäftigung und in Ostdeutschland zu einer Erhöhung der Monatslöhne geführt. Damit werden neue Erkenntnisse zur Debatte über die Existenz und das Ausmaß von Mindestlohneffekten auf Verdienste und Arbeitszeiten sowie zu deren politischen Implikationen vorgelegt." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)
-
Literaturhinweis
Effects of the German Minimum Wage on Wages and Household Income (2025)
Zitatform
Pusch, Toralf (2025): Effects of the German Minimum Wage on Wages and Household Income. In: Jahrbücher für Nationalökonomie und Statistik, Jg. 245, H. 1-2, S. 153-183. DOI:10.1515/jbnst-2023-0024
Abstract
"This article examines the effects of the introduction of the statutory minimum wage on the distribution of individual income from wages, as well as gross and net means-weighted income of workers in Germany. For the first time, data from the Survey of Income and Consumption was used, in which incomes are recorded in great detail. Both descriptive findings and the results of Unconditional Quantile Regressions indicate that the incomes of workers in regions with a high level of minimum wage intervention experienced significant increases after the introduction of the minimum wage, ranging into the middle band of the income distribution. Accordingly, the minimum wage has positively influenced the incomes of a large number of employee households." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © De Gruyter) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Labour Market Dynamics of Minimum Wage Workers (2025)
Zitatform
Redmond, Paul, Seamus McGuinness & Elish Kelly (2025): Labour Market Dynamics of Minimum Wage Workers. (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 17598), Bonn, 16 S.
Abstract
"Ireland is the only country in Europe with a direct question in its Labour Force Survey to identify minimum wage employees. By combining this with the longitudinal component of the Labour Force Survey, we examine the labor market transitions of minimum wage employees over a period of up to five quarters. After one quarter, just over half of minimum wage employees are still on minimum wage while 28 percent have moved to higher pay. After one year, almost half have moved to higher pay, with just one-third remaining on minimum wage. Employees that move to higher pay are more likely to change jobs compared to those that stay on minimum wage. Despite this, the majority (almost 90 percent) of minimum wage employees that transition to higher pay do so with the same employer. We employ a dynamic random effects probit model to estimate the degree of genuine state dependence of minimum wage employment. While there is some degree of true state dependence, much of the persistence in minimum wage employment is due to observed and unobserved heterogeneity, whereby minimum wage employees possess characteristics that result in them entering, and staying on, minimum wage. Our results also indicate that minimum wage employees are about five times more likely than higher paid employees to transition into economic inactivity. However, the majority of these are young people in education, and as such may not be overly concerning to policymakers." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
The impact of a minimum wage increase on hours worked: heterogeneous effects by gender and sector (2025)
Zitatform
Redmond, Paul & Seamus McGuinness (2025): The impact of a minimum wage increase on hours worked: heterogeneous effects by gender and sector. In: Economica, Jg. 92, H. 365, S. 84-106. DOI:10.1111/ecca.12555
Abstract
"A minimum wage increase could lead to adverse employment effects for certain subgroups of minimum wage workers, while leaving others unaffected. This heterogeneity could be overlooked in studies that examine the overall population of minimum wage workers. In this paper, we test for heterogeneous effects of a minimum wage increase on the hours worked of minimum wage employees in Ireland. For all minimum wage workers, we find that a 10% increase in the minimum wage leads to a one-hour reduction in weekly hours worked, equating to an hours elasticity of approximately −0.3. However, for industry workers and those in the accommodation & food sector, the impact is larger, with elasticity −0.8. We also find a negative impact on the hours worked among men on minimum wage, with no significant effect for women. This is due to the disproportionate number of men working in sectors that show the greatest impact on hours. In line with suggestions from the recent literature, we attempt to identify directly those in receipt of minimum wage using hourly wage data, while also studying the dynamic impact on hours worked over multiple time periods using a fully flexible difference-in-differences estimator." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
The Netherlands’ Minimum Wage 1969–2022: Can We Learn from Decline? (2025)
Zitatform
Salverda, Wiemer (2025): The Netherlands’ Minimum Wage 1969–2022: Can We Learn from Decline? In: Jahrbücher für Nationalökonomie und Statistik, Jg. 245, H. 1-2, S. 45-78. DOI:10.1515/jbnst-2023-0036
Abstract
"This paper evaluates the evolution of the Dutch minimum wage since its introduction in 1969 and discusses this as an intriguing case suggesting that a deeper, economic analysis of firm and employee behaviors is required for minimum-wage analysis in general. The real level of the minimum wage has fallen tremendously after 1979, all the way back nowadays to the level of the early 1970s, due to the system of uprating and to government interventions. The minimum-wage employment share shows an even stronger decline after 1979, but, surprisingly, the share below the unchanged real minimum wage of 1979 and in bands above this has remained largely unchanged. Intriguingly, firms have continued paying the same. Composition shifts in minimum-wage employment are significant, towards larger enterprise on the demand side and towards part-time employees on the supply side. Nationally and internationally, virtually all available minimum-wage analyses of employment effects focus on rises of the minimum wage and ignore drops. However, OECD data show that declines are surprisingly frequent, making them perfectly normal economic occurrences that firms will account for. I argue that declines deserve examination in their own right, certainly also from a monopsonistic perspective. Plausibly, declines incite different responses from increases, and their analysis will require the examination of heterogeneous behavior of both firms and employees. Such analysis will reinforce the economics of minimum-wage analysis as advocated by David Neumark and its integration in labor economics as advocated by David Card." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © De Gruyter) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Minimum or Living Wage? Framing Effects on Preferences and Expectations (2025)
Zitatform
Schaitberger, Tim (2025): Minimum or Living Wage? Framing Effects on Preferences and Expectations. In: BJIR, Jg. 63, H. 2, S. 249-265. DOI:10.1111/bjir.12847
Abstract
"Living wage campaigns are widely studied, yet less is known about how the frame differs from the minimum wage regarding public opinion and preferences. Such framing effects hold policy implications, as in 2016, UK Government changed the name of the regulatory wage floor to a living wage, concurrent with calls for welfare benefits cuts. This study explores how using the frame of ‘living’ rather than ‘minimum’ wage changes public socioeconomic expectations and preferences, and examines how a proposed wage increase, ranging from 50p to £6, comparatively influences public support for welfare spending. Methodologically, a sample from the United Kingdom's general population was recruited to participate in a series of online survey experiments. Treatment frames were randomly administered, followed by questions regarding the regulatory wage floor, and socioeconomic and redistributive preferences. Findings suggest introducing the term ‘living wage’ results in (1) higher expected real wages and unemployment effects; (2) raises the preferred wage floor for the United Kingdom and London; (3) greater desire for separate regional wage floors and (4) modest evidence suggesting that a living wage frame increases support for welfare spending. Interestingly, a proposed monetary wage floor increase had a null effect on welfare preferences when calling for a low or modest increase. However, a substantial proposed increase of over 50% led to a sharp reduction in support for benefits spending." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Mind the gap: effects of the national minimum wage on the gender wage gap of full-time workers in Germany (2025)
Zitatform
Schmid, Ramona (2025): Mind the gap: effects of the national minimum wage on the gender wage gap of full-time workers in Germany. In: Journal of Economic Inequality, S. 1-30. DOI:10.1007/s10888-025-09669-6
Abstract
"Since 2015, the national minimum wage aims to benefit primarily low-wage workers in Germany. I examine how the minimum wage influences gender wage gaps of full-time workers within the lower half of the wage distribution on a regional level. Using administrative data, distinct regional differences in the extent of gender wage gaps and responses to the minimum wage become clear. Overall, wage gaps between men and women at the 10th percentile decrease by 2.46 and 6.34 percentage points in the West and East of Germany after 2015. Applying counterfactual wage distributions, I show that introducing the minimum wage explains decreases in gender wage gaps by 60% to 95%. Group-specific analyses demonstrate various responses based on age, educational level and occupational activity. Counterfactual aggregate Oaxaca-Blinder decompositions indicate that discriminatory remuneration structures decrease in the West of Germany after introducing the minimum wage." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
Weiterführende Informationen
Data product DOI: 10.5164/IAB.SIAB7519.de.en.v1 -
Literaturhinweis
The impact of minimum wages on overall health and well-being: Global evidence from the Gallup World Poll (2025)
Zitatform
Sotirakopoulos, Panagiotis, Cahit Guven, Aydogan Ulker & Carol Graham (2025): The impact of minimum wages on overall health and well-being: Global evidence from the Gallup World Poll. In: Social Science & Medicine, Jg. 375. DOI:10.1016/j.socscimed.2025.118064
Abstract
"We examine the impact of minimum wage increases on the overall self-reported health and subjective well-being of low-skilled workers using the Gallup World Poll from 2009 to 2020. We identify effects using within-country changes over time and cross-country variations in the timing and intensity of minimum wage increases across 87 countries. Our findings suggest that minimum wage increases benefit health and certain dimensions of subjective well-being. Specifically, we estimate a range of specifications and find that a 10 percent increase in the minimum wage leads to an increase in self-reported health ranging from 0 % to 1 % and an increase in satisfaction with the standard of living between 1 % and 6 %, at the outcome means. Minimum wage increases are linked to higher incomes, a lower likelihood of overtime work, enhanced social interactions, and more positive daily experiences. These benefits are especially significant in countries with stronger rule of law, among male workers, and for individuals in nations with free and universal healthcare access. A series of sensitivity and placebo tests confirm the robustness of these findings." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2025 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
The Effects of Dutch Youth Minimum Wage Increases on Income Inequality (2025)
Zitatform
Steenks, Koen, Arjan Heyma & Tobias Vervliet (2025): The Effects of Dutch Youth Minimum Wage Increases on Income Inequality. In: De Economist, S. 1-32. DOI:10.1007/s10645-025-09451-z
Abstract
"This study employs increases in the Dutch Youth Minimum Wage (YMW) in 2017 and 2019 for certain age groups as a natural experiment to examine the impact of changes in minimum wages on income inequality through the employment-channel. Using the Difference-in-Difference (DiD) and Two-Stage Least Squares (2SLS) methods, it estimates the effects of YMW increases on hourly wages and working hours across various income segments. These effects are then used to simulate the monthly income distribution after the YMW increases in 2017 and 2019. This way, a comparative analysis is conducted between the observed income distribution prior to the YMW increases and the simulated income distribution thereafter, focusing on the aspect of income inequality. The findings reveal distinct effects based on the magnitude of the wage increase. Modest increases (for individuals aged 18–19) and substantial increases (for individuals aged 20–22 in 2017 and 20–21 in 2019) both generate spike and spillover effects, influencing individuals earning hourly wages up to at least 120% of the new minimum wage. Small increases reduce working hours for higher-income individuals, while larger increases negatively affect working hours for middle-income earners (100–150% of the new YMW) but benefit those earning below 100% and above 150% of the new threshold. Overall, both small and large YMW increases contribute to income redistribution by altering wages and working hours." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Analyzing the effects of minimum wages: a microeconomic approach (2025)
Zitatform
Thielen, Clemens & Philipp Weinschenk (2025): Analyzing the effects of minimum wages: a microeconomic approach. In: Economic Theory, Jg. 79, H. 3, S. 945-991. DOI:10.1007/s00199-024-01607-3
Abstract
"We use a microeconomic approach to analyze the effects of minimum wages. Agents are allowed to have different productivities at different principals as well as different costs of working. We obtain several new and interesting effects. Minimum wages could influence the generated surplus when leaving employment unaffected, and destroy jobs that generate relatively high levels of surplus when affecting employment. Furthermore, minimum wages could harm agents even if these stay employed, while principals could benefit from them. We provide a complete characterization of the effects and show that these hold independently of the specific bargaining procedure and information structure." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Minimum Wage Effects and Monopsony Explanations (2025)
Zitatform
Wiltshire, Justin, Carl McPherson, Michael Reich & Denis Sosinskiy (2025): Minimum Wage Effects and Monopsony Explanations. In: Journal of labor economics, S. 1-46. DOI:10.1086/735551
Abstract
"We present the first causal analysis of a seven-year run-up of minimum wages to $15. Using a novel stacked county-level synthetic control estimator and data on fast-food restaurants, we find substantial pay growth and no disemployment. Our results hold among lower-wage counties and counties without local minimum wages. Minimum wage increases reduce Separation rates and raise wages faster than prices at McDonald’s stores; both findings imply a monopsonistic labor market with declining rents. In the tight post-pandemic labor market, when laborsupply becomes more elastic, we find positive employment effects. These become larger and statistically significant after addressing pandemic-response confounds." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Distributional Effects of Local Minimum Wages: A Spatial Job Search Approach (2025)
Zitatform
Zhang, Weilong & Petra E. Todd (2025): Distributional Effects of Local Minimum Wages: A Spatial Job Search Approach. In: Journal of labor economics, Jg. 43, H. S1, S. S221-S267. DOI:10.1086/734391
Abstract
"This paper develops a spatial general equilibrium job search model to study the effects of local and universal minimum wage policies on employment, wages, job postings, vacancies, migration, and welfare. Workers search for jobs locally and in neighboring areas, deciding whether to migrate or commute after receiving remote offers. The model, estimated using ACS and QWI data, reliably forecasts commuting responses to city minimum wage hikes. Simulations show that low-skill (noncollege) workers benefit from local wage increases up to $12.50. The greatest per capita welfare gain for all workers is achieved by a $15.25 universal minimum wage." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Two birds, one stone: minimum wage and child labor (2025)
Zitatform
Özmen, Mustafa Utku & Belgi Turan (2025): Two birds, one stone: minimum wage and child labor. In: International Journal of Manpower, Jg. 46, H. 1, S. 168-196. DOI:10.1108/ijm-08-2023-0440
Abstract
"Purpose: This paper investigates the impact of quasi-exogenous and substantial increases in the minimum wage on child labor outcomes in Türkiye. The study aims to provide empirical evidence on how minimum wage policies affect child labor outcomes in a developing country context, with a focus on gender and age differences. It seeks to understand whether minimum wage increases lead to a reduction in child labor and whether the impact is different for various demographic groups. Design/methodology/Approach: The research employs a difference-in-differences methodology using data from the 2012 and 2019 Child Labor Force Survey in Türkiye. The treatment group consists of children from households with minimum wage earners, while the control group comprises children from other households. Various labor market outcomes are analyzed, and robustness checks are performed. Findings: Our findings indicate that while the overall effect of minimum wage increases on child labor is statistically insignificant, there are notable heterogeneous impacts across different demographic groups and employment sectors. Specifically, we observe a significant reduction in the employment probability of girls under the age of 15 and unpaid family workers. Additionally, the likelihood of younger children being wage earners decreases, and the minimum wage increase reduces employment in the agriculture and services sectors for certain subgroups. The impact is also more limited for children in single-adult-worker households. Social implications: These results underscore the varying effects of minimum wage policies on child labor and highlight the importance of considering demographic and sectoral differences in policy formulation. Policymakers should complement such policies with income-generating programs and targeted education initiatives to address child labor issues more comprehensively and sustainably. Originality/value: This study fills a critical gap in the limited international literature on the causal effects of minimum wage policies on child labor incidence. One notable exception, Menon and van der Meulen Rodgers (2018) have explored the impact of minimum wage on child labor in India using regional variation, our study uniquely analyzes the effects at the household level in Türkiye. This approach provides valuable insights into how minimum wage changes affect child labor outcomes in a developing economy context with a high prevalence of minimum wage earners. It also contributes to the broader economic understanding of child labor and household income dynamics." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku, © Emerald Group)
-
Literaturhinweis
Minimum wages and insurance within the firm (2024)
Adamopoulou, Effrosyni; Rachedi, Omar; Manaresi, Francesco; Yurdagul, Emircan;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))
-
Literaturhinweis
Minimum wage and self-employed business owners: Evidence from South Korea (2024)
Zitatform
Ahn, Taehyun (2024): Minimum wage and self-employed business owners: Evidence from South Korea. In: Labour Economics, Jg. 88. DOI:10.1016/j.labeco.2024.102539
Abstract
"This study examines the influences of minimum wage on self-employment exits, using recent changes in the minimum wage level in South Korea. Using the cross-industry variation on the impact of the minimum wage—the proportion of workers whose wages are below the minimum wage in the upcoming year—combined with individual longitudinal data, I estimate the model of self-employment exits. Overall, the estimates show that the minimum wage hike has no significant impact on self-employed workers. However, it increases the likelihood of the business closing for the self-employed who hire employees. The results imply that a ten percent increase in the minimum wage raises the exit probability by 2.6 percentage points, which is 30.9 % of the average exit rate for those with employees. Moreover, the exits are significantly associated with the transition to non-employment." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2024 Elsevier) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Minimum Wage Effects on Human Capital Accumulation: Evidence from Canadian Data (2024)
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))
-
Literaturhinweis
Unions: Wage floors, seniority rules, and unemployment duration (2024)
Alvarez, Fernando; Tourre, Fabrice; Shimer, Robert;Zitatform
Alvarez, Fernando, Robert Shimer & Fabrice Tourre (2024): Unions: Wage floors, seniority rules, and unemployment duration. In: Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Jg. 169. DOI:10.1016/j.jedc.2024.104965
Abstract
"This paper examines the impact of unions on unemployment and wages in a dynamic equilibrium search model. We model a union as imposing a minimum wage and rationing jobs to ensure that the union's most senior members are employed. This generates rest unemployment, where following a downturn in their labor market, unionized workers are willing to wait for jobs to reappear rather than search for a new labor market. We characterize the hazard rate of exiting unemployment, and show that it is low at long durations whenever the union-imposed minimum wage is high; we establish that a high union-imposed minimum wage generates a compressed wage distribution and a high turnover rate of jobs —properties consistent with the data. Finally, we show that seniority rules lead to lower unemployment levels, relative to an alternative rule allocating jobs to workers randomly." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2024 Elsevier) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Minimum wages, wage dispersion and financial constraints in firms (2024)
Zitatform
Arabzadeh, Hamzeh, Almut Balleer, Britta Gehrke & Ahmet Ali Taskin (2024): Minimum wages, wage dispersion and financial constraints in firms. In: European Economic Review, Jg. 163, 2024-01-14. DOI:10.1016/j.euroecorev.2024.104678
Abstract
"This paper studies how minimum wages affect the wage distribution if firms face financial constraints. Using German employer-employee data and firm balance sheets, we document that the within-firm wage dispersion decreases more with higher minimum wages when firms are financially constrained. We introduce financial frictions into a search and matching labor market model with stochastic job matching, imperfect information, and endogenous effort. In line with the empirical literature, the model predicts that a higher minimum wage reduces hirings and separations. Firms become more selective such that their employment and wage dispersion fall. If effort increases strongly, firms may increase employment at the expense of higher wage dispersion. Financially constrained firms are more selective and reward effort less. As a result, within-firm wage dispersion and employment in these firms fall more with the minimum wage." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2024 Elsevier) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
The relationship between minimum wage and employment. A synthetic control method approach (2024)
Zitatform
Arnadillo, Juan J., Amadeo Fuenmayor & Rafael Granell (2024): The relationship between minimum wage and employment. A synthetic control method approach. In: The Economic and Labour Relations Review, Jg. 35, H. 3, S. 771-791. DOI:10.1017/elr.2024.44
Abstract
"Spain increased its minimum wage (MW) by 22% in 2019. Given the intense debate in the economic literature on the impact of MW increases on the labour market, we conduct an impact assessment of this policy. The synthetic control method will be used to replicate the Spanish labour market by means of a pool of European countries that, in the absence of other reliable measures, simulates the evolution of Spanish employment. This will allow us to identify the causal effect from the increase in the MW. After applying the technique, the increase in the MW is found to have no effect on employment. The results have been subjected to robustness tests such as leave one out or segmentation by gender or age." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
-
Literaturhinweis
Minimum wages in 2024: Annual review (2024)
Aumayr-Pintar, Christine; Seghesio, Marco; Kostolný, Jakub; Vacas-Soriano, Carlos;Zitatform
Aumayr-Pintar, Christine, Carlos Vacas-Soriano, Jakub Kostolný & Marco Seghesio (2024): Minimum wages in 2024: Annual review. (Eurofound research report / European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions), Dublin, 94 S.
Abstract
"Minimum wages protect workers from unjustified low wages and ensure a level playing field for companies. All EU Member States and Norway have minimum wages in place, albeit in different forms. Among the 27 Member States, 22 have a national minimum wage, with one (or sometimes more than one) rate setting a basic wage floor. In addition, collective agreements are used to further regulate pay and usually set rates above the national minimum wage. In the remaining five Member States and Norway, minimum wages are set in sectorlevel collective agreements, which includes a high coverage of workers in these countries. The 2024 version of this annual review provides an update on minimum wage developments, details how the rates were set and which criteria were used in their adjustment, and maps the influence of EU-level policy on minimum wage setting." (Text excerpt, IAB-Doku) ((en))
Aspekt auswählen:
- Grundsätzliches zum flächendeckenden Mindestlohn
- Auswirkungen des flächendeckenden Mindestlohns auf
- Auswirkungen des flächendeckenden Mindestlohns auf Personengruppen
- Ausnahmen vom flächendeckenden Mindestlohn u.a. für
- Ausweichreaktionen auf Mindestlöhne in Deutschland
- Bundesländer
- Branchenspezifische Mindestlöhne und deren Auswirkungen auf
- Mindestlohn in anderen Ländern