The German statutory minimum wage and its effects on regional employment and unemployment

Arbeitspapier

This paper studies the effects of the introduction of Germany's statutory minimum wage in 2015 on employment and unemployment on the level of regional labor markets. Using variation in the regional exposure to the new wage floor, we employ a difference-in-differences approach that compares the evolution of employment and unemployment between regions with varying minimum wage bites. Overall, we find no statistically significant effect of the introduction of the German minimum wage on regular employment subject to social insurance, but a statistically significant negative effect on marginal employment. The reduction is not accompanied by a proportional increase in unemployment.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: IZA Policy Paper ; No. 145

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure ; Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials ; Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs: Public Policy
• Subject: minimum wage ; employment ; unemployment ; labor market regions ; Germany

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Bonin, Holger ; Isphording, Ingo Eduard ; Krause-Pilatus, Annabelle ; Lichter, Andreas ; Pestel, Nico ; Rinne, Ulf
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)
• (where): Bonn
• (when): 2019

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/206960
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:42 AM CET