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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. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Using a regression discontinuity design in tandem with a difference-in-discontinuities analysis, the study finds that increasing the minimum wage reduces the employment probability of young males by 2.5–3.1 percentage points. Design/methodology/approach: The authors exploit an age-specific minimum wage rule – which sets a lower minimum wage for workers of age 15 than the adult minimum wage paid to workers of age 16 and above – and its abolition to estimate the causal effect of a minimum wage increase on youth employment and education in Turkey. Findings: The authors also document that, initially, the minimum wage increase does not lead to a major change in high school enrollment, while the likelihood of transitioning into "neither in employment nor in education and training" (NEET) category notably increases. However, in the medium term, the NEET effect is transitory; school enrollment increases over time and absorbs the negative employment effect. Originality/value: The authors argue that policy effects have mostly been driven by demand-side forces rather than the supply side. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine whether participating informality is attributed to income shocks such as wage arrears, unexpected wage cuts or compulsory unpaid leaves. The current research uses Russia longitudinal Monitoring Survey 2002–2015. Design/methodology/approach: Using formal jobs as the base category, the authors conducted pooled multinomial logit regressions allowing for the two additional employment statuses: workers without contracts and unincorporated business workers. Findings: The overall results mainly suggest that no effects occur. In other words, unexpected negative income shocks are not the main driving force of informality. Although the majority of previous studies are based on survey questions on unexpected income shock which has sample selection bias, to obtain robustness, the current study used Russian minimum wage reforms as income shocks. This research shows that Russian minimum wage reform does not affect the decision of informality in the labor market. Research limitations/implications: Given the data limitations, the authors only observed and examined the supply-side of the labor market. Tax-evading motives would be the main reason for informality; to ensure this conjecture, however, demand and supply sides need to be simultaneously examined which is beyond the scope of this study. Originality/value: In contrast to a large number of studies on cross-sectional differences in determinants of informal job holding, emphasis on the effects of income shocks on informal employment across business cycles has been minimal. The current study focuses on the business cycles because trends of informal employment can be interpreted differently regardless of whether in an economic boom or recession. Russia, as a unique natural experiment, provides us to examine informal job holdings over the business cycle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The authors investigate the extent to which differences in provincial union legislation have impacts on the union earnings premium. Design/methodology/approach: Content analysis of provincial union regulations of 25 provinces is conducted to create two indices: one reflecting the degree of stringency of the local requirement that unions be established in a timely fashion and the other reflecting requirements for employers to negotiate wages with the union. The authors use individual level data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) of 2010 to estimate the union earnings premium. Findings: The authors find that unionised workers in China receive an earnings premium ranging from 6.4 to 9.6%, which is in range of other studies (but not all) for China that tend to find a (perhaps surprising) union wage premium in spite of the fact that unions tend to be "company unions" designed to foster stability and growth and to serve as a transmission belt for the wishes of the Party rather than bargaining for the benefit of their members. The authors also find that provincial requirements to establish unions in a timely fashion enhance the impact of unions on the earnings of their members, but provincial requirements to negotiate wages dampen the effect of unions on the earnings of their members. Reasons for these results are discussed. Originality/value: Despite this lack of independence of the Chinese unions, research continuously finds that Chinese unions have effects that are surprisingly similar to those of unions in Western countries. This paper drills deeper into the underlying mechanisms to see if local union strategies, exemplified by provincial union legislation, can explain the unexpected union effects on compensation. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first paper to do so. Moreover, the authors use individual-level data in contrast to most studies on China that use firm or provincial level aggregate data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of health on wages of Australian workers, with a focus on gender differences and the role of macroeconomic conditions in the effects. Design/methodology/approach: The first 15 waves of the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia survey are used to estimate a wage model that accounts for the endogeneity of health, unobserved heterogeneity and sample selection bias. Findings: The results show that, after accounting for the endogeneity of health, unobserved heterogeneity and sample selection bias, better health increases wages for Australian male workers, but not for female workers. The results also show that accounting for the endogeneity of health, unobserved heterogeneity and potential sample selection bias is important in estimating the effects of health on wages. In particular, a simple ordinary least squares estimator would underestimate the effect of health on wages for males, while overestimate it for females, and simply addressing the endogeneity of health using instrumental variables could overestimate the effect for both genders. It is also found that the effects of health on wages fall under depressed macroeconomic conditions, perhaps due to reduced job mobility and increased presentism during a recession. Originality/value: This study adds to the international literature on the effects of health on wages by providing empirical evidence from Australia. The model applied to estimate the effects takes advantage of a panel dataset to address the bias resulting potentially from all the sources of the endogeneity of health, unobserved heterogeneity and sample selection. The results indeed show that failing to address these issues would substantially bias the estimated effects of health on wages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to investigate the asymmetric impact of exchange rate pass-through (ERPT) on employees' wages via consumer prices in 15 major oil-exporting countries from sub-Saharan Africa over the period 1996-2017 using the panel threshold regression model. Design/methodology/approach: The methodology used in this article was built on non-linear panel threshold regression models developed by Hansen (1996, 1999) threshold regression. The authors first tested for the existence of threshold-effect in ERPT and wage nexus using 1,000 bootstrap replications and 400 grid searches to obtain an optimal threshold. We also estimated that asymmetric ERPT on employees' wages reacts differently when the inflation-threshold exceeds beyond a 15.12% threshold level. Findings: Our findings showed that asymmetric ERPT is incomplete and indicates that an increase by one standard deviation in real exchange rate causes a decline in employees' wages by 2.69%. Research limitations/implications: The policy implications of our results are drawn from the significant threshold estimates. However, a significant threshold value of 15.12 is an inflation-threshold estimates that split our 330 observations into the lower (upper) regimes. Further, an inflation rate beyond the threshold value is likely to have an asymmetric ERPT on employees' wages in the 15 major oil-exporting sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries. Practical implications: The practical implication of the study is when ERPT exceeds the threshold, the effect of real exchange rate variations is passed on to employees' wages. It is widely believed that labor productivity increase with increased minimum wages. Nevertheless, there is contention as regards the effects on employment and poverty. As rising goods prices make the minimum wage increased homogeneous of degree zero. Social implications: Considerable increased ERPT on imported goods reduces employees' wages purchasing ability from import-dependent countries through import prices. Once it has documented, this also reduces welfare via deteriorations of marginal propensity to consume (MPC) and marginal propensity to savings (MPS). Originality/value: This article integrates labor purchasing power into the analysis of ERPT using non-linear dynamic panel heterogeneous threshold regression. It extends the Hansen (1996, 1999) dynamic panel threshold models to exchange rate pass-through in SSA economies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The article clarifies the wage–employment relation in a developing country. Several years ago, many articles in the United States indicated that the relation between increasing wages and increasing unemployment is unclear. These articles from the United States are insufficient to be applicable to all countries, especially developing countries such as Colombia where institutions and the wage–employment relation differ from those in the United States. Design/methodology/approach: A meta-analysis methodology was used as 28 estimates of long-run wage–employment elasticity in Colombia from 1998 to 2016 were analyzed. Findings: This article provides insights into how real wages affect employment. Despite publication biases, results showed that a 1% increase in wages results in a 0.11% decline in employment in the long run. Research limitations/implications: Due to the publication bias, it is not considered how variables such as sectors, estimation strategies (panel data, partial adjustment, cointegration and non-linear least squares, among others), formal/informal urban sectors, government services and transportation, and qualified and unskilled workers affect the true elasticity value. Practical implications: This paper includes implications for public policy because the results are important to minimum wages policy in a developing country. Originality/value: There are no studies regarding the wage–employment relation in a developing country. The empirical results obtained in this article are useful for regulators, policy makers and researchers to understand whether employment is affected by real wages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to estimate the causal effect of minimum wages (MWs) on the wages, employment and hours of migrant workers in China, and to show their inter-relatedness and how employers can offset some of the costs through subtle adjustments. This paper also illustrates the importance of disaggregating by region and sex. Design/methodology/approach: Causal estimates are provided through difference-in-differences (DID) analysis, and robustness checks through propensity score matching. The analysis is based on micro data at the individual level from the household survey on migrant workers by the National Population and Family Planning Commission, combined with macro data regarding municipalities' population, GDP and employment information based on the China Economic Information Network database. Findings: MW increases for those paid by the month increased the earnings of both low-wage males and females. However, males tend not to experience an adverse employment effect because part of the cost increase is offset by employers increasing their monthly hours of work. Hours of work do not increase for females, so they experience an adverse employment effect. This highlights the importance of examining cost offsets such as increases in hours of work, as well as analyzing effects separately for males and females. Research limitations/implications: The reason behind why employers offset some of the cost increase for males paid by the month by increasing their hours of work, but this cost-offsetting adjustment does not occur for females is uncertain. Social implications: For workers paid by the month, employers can offset some of the cost increase by increasing their hours of work, leading to no reductions in employment. But this adjustment occurs only for males. Hours are not increased for females, but they experience reductions in employment. Clearly, MW increases have adverse effects either in the form of employment reductions (for females) or increases in hours of work for the same monthly pay (for males). Originality/value: This paper provides causal estimates through DID analysis and robustness checks through Propensity Score Matching, and also indicates how employers can offset the cost of MW increases by increasing hours for those paid by the month, resulting in no adverse employment effect for such workers, but an adverse employment effect when such an adjustment does not occur. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to estimate the causal effect of minimum wages on the employment of low-skilled workers in less developed regions of China.Design/methodology/approach Based on data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey, a double-difference (DD) methodology is used to compare the employment of low-skilled individuals before and after a minimum wage increase in their provinces with a comparison group of individuals in provinces that did not have a minimum wage increase. Also, a triple-difference methodology (DDD) is used that also includes an additional control group of highly educated workers as a within-province internal comparison group that should not be affected by a minimum wage increase.Findings No evidence of an adverse employment effect is found in any of the 36 different estimates, consistent with recent US evidence that uses a similar DD methodology.Research limitations/implications The data are not national representative; rather heavily weighted towards the less developed Central, Western and parts of the Eastern Regions of China. This may partially explain the absence of the theoretically expected adverse employment effect. Other related reasons are discussed, including: lack of enforcement in those less developed regions; a large presence of state-owned enterprises in the regions where employment security clause remains intact; the relatively less developed labour markets in the regions including where employers may behave in a monopsony fashion in their labour markets; shock effects; and cost offsets from reduced fringe benefits and increases in the pace of work. This paper was unable to disentangle the separate effect of these possible factors.Originality/value This is one of the few studies on minimum wages in China to focus on low-skilled workers in less developed regions, to use individuals as the unit of observation rather than aggregates, and to provide causal estimates based on DD and DDD methodologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of minimum wage on youth employment across employment statuses in Indonesia. This study uses the National Labour Force Survey (Sakernas) from 2010 to 2012. Design/methodology/approach – This study uses a multinomial logit model to see the youth distribution across different employment status changes as a result of an increase in the minimum wage. Five categories of youth employment statuses are examined including self-employed; unpaid family workers; paid employees in the covered sector; paid employees in the uncovered sectors; and unemployed. The model is examined separately for urban and rural areas, as well as for the male and female youth labour market. Findings – The results generally suggest that an increase in minimum wage decrease the probability of youth being employed in the covered sector, i.e. paid employment in the covered sector and increase the probability of youth being employed in the uncovered sectors, including self-employed, unpaid family workers, and paid employment in the uncovered sectors. This study indicates a displacement effect for youths from the covered sector into the uncovered sector as suggested by the two-sector model. The specific results are different across urban and rural labour markets, as well as across males and females. Originality/value – Compared to the developed country studies, the studies on the effects of minimum wage on youth employment in developing countries is relatively limited. The sample from Indonesian labour market with a large informal sector has never been used for these purposes. This study also contributes to the literature by using the particular definition of the covered-uncovered sector to the Indonesian labour market based on the employment status and individual wage data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to estimate the impact of minimum wages on employment and wages in China. Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses the difference-in-difference methodology to estimate the employment and wage impacts of the minimum wage increase in 2003 – a year when substantial minimum wage increases occurred in some provinces (treatment provinces) but not in others (comparison provinces). The analysis is restricted to the eastern region so as to make comparisons across relatively homogeneous and contiguous provinces with large numbers of women and rural migrant workers in urban areas – the target groups for minimum wages. Findings – The study finds that overall, minimum wages in China do have an adverse employment effect but the effect is statistically insignificant and quantitatively inconsequential. The adverse employment effects are generally larger in the more market-driven sectors, in the low-wage sector of retail and wholesale trade and restaurants, and for women; however even these effects are extremely small. Minimum wages also had no impact on aggregate wages. These estimates appear consistent with many of those based on this methodology which tends to find no substantial adverse employment effect from minimum wages. Practical implications – Good news: minimum wages do not seem to have any substantial adverse employment effect in China. Bad news: this could simply reflect the fact that they are not enforced. Originality/value – This is one of the few studies of effect of minimum wages in China in English, and using a difference-in-difference methodology as first employed by Card. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction to articles published within the issue is presented, including one by Marion König et al on the impact of an introduction of minimum wages in the construction sector in Germany and another by Mark Trappmann et al on the labor market situation and the problems faced by lower income individuals.

Purpose -- The purpose of this paper is to provide a comprehensive portrait of who earns the minimum wage, in terms of the characteristics of the individual that are most important in determining this outcome. Design/methodology/approach -- This study uses individual data from the Annual Income Supplements of the New Zealand (NZ) Household Labour Force Surveys between June 1997 and June 2004. This unit record data allows isolation of workers earning the minimum wage or close to it. A more sophisticated quantitative analysis is also carried out, where the probability of earning at or below the minimum wage is modelled to estimate what individual characteristics are most significant in determining minimum wage status. Findings -- One of the key findings was that individual characteristics (such as age) are much more important than household circumstance or industry affiliations, in terms of the probability of earning minimum wage. Originality/value -- NZ has substantially increased minimum wages for teenagers and adults since 2000. For example, since the youth minimum was introduced in March 1994, it had increased by 52 per cent in real terms by 2004. Consequently, recent NZ experience offers a rare opportunity to isolate who earns the minimum wage and which subgroups are more likely to be potentially impacted by a rising minimum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - There is now a large amount of literature on gender wage differentials, but only a few studies have examined why men and women end up in different jobs and at different levels. This paper aims to study the extent of differences in career mobility between men and women. Design/methodology/approach - The issue is analysed with the help of event history analysis based on Swedish event history data. Findings - The authors find that differences do exist in career mobility between women and men. Women's chances of getting a better job are about half those of men. However, when analysing employees with more than 12 years in education, the difference between men and women is smaller. Part of the difference between women and men is explained by family-related factors. Women spend much more time in family-related non-market activities and these factors also have a negative effect on their chances of career mobility. Originality/value - This paper is useful to those wishing to examine the extent of differences in career mobility between men and women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - Tests for the existence of a long-run relationship between real wages and employment, utilising annual data from 1961-1996 for a panel of 12 European Union countries. Design/methodology/approach -Applies modem time series techniques organised around panel unit root and panel cointegration tests to draw sharper conclusions from the short time series that are typically available. Findings - Indicates that a long-run relationship between real wages and employment cannot be established. This being so, little success is expected in bringing down unemployment, the most pressing problem in the European Union, by reducing real wages. Originality/value - Investigates the long-run relationship between real wages and employment by conducting more reliable tests in the context of 12 European countries, namely Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Spain, France, Ireland, Italy, The Netherlands, Portugal, the UK, Norway and Finland over the period 1961-1996. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are few systematic studies of wage discrimination against homosexuals: none for the UK This Paper studies the earnings of homosexual men and women in the UK relative to their heterosexual counterparts. Homosexuals are identified as individuals living with "same sex partners". Although gays of either sex earn more than non-gays, once allowance is made for differences in characteristics gay men appear to be paid less than heterosexuals, while lesbians appear to be paid more. As this implies, the gender pay gap is smaller amongst homosexuals than amongst heterosexuals. The gay male pay penalty is significantly lower in London than elsewhere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Only few studies have examined gender wage differentials and the extent of gender discrimination in South Africa. The following analysis covers several years after the end of Apartheid to describe the development of gender wage differentials and discrimination over time. Furthermore, it is also taken into account that labour force participants may have different probabilities of finding employment By estimating selectivity corrected wage regressions it is not only possible to decompose wage gaps into the well-known endowment and discrimination components but also detect the so-called indirect effects that already arise at the selection into employment stage. Results obtained from this approach can drastically change the impression of wage discrimination gained from standard decomposition techniques. African women were found to increasingly suffer from discrimination at the hiring stage, whereas White women are more affected by direct wage discrimination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the relative remuneration of migrants and German nationals in paid employment in pre-unification Germany. Using microdata it shows that migrants typically earn higher wages than comparable German nationals. The paper also shows the distinction between genders and skill levels to be crucial in the determination of wage gaps. Wage gaps are decomposed in the standard Oaxaca -Blinder way and their development is examined using counterfactual analysis. The paper also shows that conventionally defined wage discrimination works in favour of migrants. Counterfactuals show that, largely, the remunerative advantage of migrants survived the 1981-1983 recession. However, when employment developments are considered, a much bleaker picture arises. The 1981-1983 recession destroyed jobs that have been traditionally occupied by migrants (manual and skilled jobs). Post-recession restructuring generated jobs that went almost exclusively to German nationals (salaried jobs). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This study investigates, on the basis of a unique combination of two large-scale data sets, how rent sharing interacts with the gender wage gap in the Belgian private sector. Empirical findings show that individual gross hourly wages are significantly and positively related to firm profits-per-employee even when controlling for group effects in the residuals, individual and firm characteristics, industry wage differentials and endogeneity of profits. Our instrumented wage-profit elasticity is of the magnitude 0.06 and it is not significantly different for men and women. Of the overall gender wage gap (on average women earn 23.7 per cent less than men), results show that around 14 per cent can be explained by the fact that on average women are employed in firms where profits-per-employee are lower. Thus, findings suggest that a substantial part of the gender wage gap is attributable to the segregation of women in less profitable firms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Equal treatment for men and women is an important objective of labour policy in the European Union, largely because there is ample evidence of gender discrimination in the wages of men and women, which are on an average higher for male workers. Research on male-female wage differentials provides evidence of a substantial wage differential favouring men after adjusting for human capital and personal characteristics such as education, age, job tenure, and labour force intermittency. However, few studies take into account the role that job mobility plays in this differential, despite its demonstrated importance in explaining the earnings profile of workers. This paper estimates gender wage differentials for workers who switch jobs and those who keep them in order to see whether job mobility enlarges or reduces the gender gap. The study uses microdata relative to Spanish workers gathered from the Households Panel Study (1994-1997), conducted by the Spanish National Statistics Institute. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses gender wage differentials in full-time employment using recently released data from the National Child Development Study and the British Cohort Study 1970. The paper compares the situations of individuals in their early thirties in 1991 and 2000 and the position of full-time employees in NCDS as the cohorts aged between 33 and 42. The distribution of individuals' experiences of unequal pay is emphasised by comparing distributions of gender differentials of an "index of unequal treatment" Passing from age 33 to 42, unequal treatment increased substantially, across the whole distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduces a collection of papers originally presented at the 79th Applied Econometrics Association Conference which was organised with the specific aim of stimulating discussion on the "econometrics of wages". Topics of particular focus include gender wage gaps and wage discrimination. The papers provide insight into the magnitude and sources of gender, racial and sexual orientation earnings inequalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses the effects of minimum wage on employment in Czechoslovakia. Ratio of the minimum wage to the average wage; Variations of exports to market economies; Influence of excess supply of real cash balances on inflation; Temporary fall in the minimum wage; Permanent fall in the minimum wage.

Analyzes the effects of youth minimum wages on youth employment and unemployment in The Netherlands. Reduction of all minimum wages; Ratio of potential earnings to the minimum wage; Existence of minimum wage regulations; Collective wage bargaining between unions and employer organizations; Sensitivity of labour demand for the minimum wage.

Discusses the impact of minimum wages on industrial wages and employment in Greece over the period 1962-1987. Collective bargaining in the country; Arbitration process; Introduction of minimum wage indexation; Evolution of the relative value of minimum wages.

Discusses the effects of reducing the minimum wage or introducing differential minimum wages on youth employment in France. Elasticity of employment with respect to the minimum wage; Employment population ratio for young persons; Methods in analyzing the stability of estimates.

Discusses the re-examination of the nature and role of minimum wage protection in industrialized countries. Different approaches in providing minimum wage protection among industrialized countries; Role of labour costs in the determination of youth employment; Link between low wages and low family income; Aims of minimum wage protection.

Discusses the effects of minimum wages on employment. Variables affecting the minimum wages in employment; Association of low dispersion of wages to high optimal minimum wages; Relationship between employment and toughness.

Discusses the role of the minimum in wage setting among countries. Four attributes of minimum wages; Ratio of the minimum to average wage; Impact of wages to the shape of wage distribution; Employment effects of the minimum; Distribution effects of the minimum.

Analyzes the unemployment effects of a minimum wage or other institutionally-imposed wage floors. Variables that determine the unemployment effects of minimum wages; Elasticity of the wage in the non-covered sector with respect to the non-covered sector labour force.

Conventional and alternative versions of the augmented Phillips curve are tested for Chile for the period 1974–1979. All regressors are significant. The alternative formulation and rationally formed expectations provide the best fit, with the minimum wage indexation and conventional curve results suggesting the presence of non-wage inflationary pressures in addition to wage ones. Forecasting is made possible by deriving the relationship between real wages and the unemployment rate, and combinations of moderate-to-substantial real wage increases and unemployment reductions were feasible, over the medium term, under the policies and economic conditions prevailing up to mid-1979. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the relationship between minimum wages and labor force participation. Worker responses to minimum wage increases; Correlation between unemployment and labor force participation rates; Supply aspects of the labor market.

The Social Exclusion Task Force, based in the Cabinet Office, works across government to ensure that the opportunities enjoyed by the vast majority of people in the UK today are extended to those whose lives have been characterised by deprivation and exclusion. The Task Force recognises that much has already been achieved through investment in public services, tax and benefit changes, and the national minimum wage. However, intensive collaborative support is needed for the most vulnerable individuals and families, whose difficulties are complex and persistent. The development of the first public service agreement (PSA) for very vulnerable adults is a major step forward in addressing the needs of some of our most disadvantaged citizens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mentioned here are some abstracts and key words of different articles related to manpower. The article "Gender Earnings Differentials Across Individuals Over Time in British Cohort Studies" analyzes gender wage differentials in full-time employment using recently released data from the National Child Development Study and the British Cohort Study 1970. The article "Rent Sharing and the Gender Wage Gap in Belgium" investigates, on the basis of a unique combination of two large-scale data sets, how rent sharing interacts with the gender wage gap in the Belgian private sector.