Effects of the minimum wage on earnings inequality : evidence from China

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IDL-55297.pdf (452.08 KB)

Date

2016

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Abstract

The report investigates minimum wage policy relative to increases in earnings inequality in China (2004- 2009). Using a set of panel data at the city level, combined with a longitudinal household survey of 16 representative provinces, the distributional effect of minimum wage changes is estimated and compared with previous studies (which have used provincial-level data and reported mixed results). The study shows that a minimum wage significantly helps reduce the earnings gap at the bottom end of the earnings distribution. The results for the Gini coefficients and variance in the analysis suggest that minimum wages help reduce earnings inequality.

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Keywords

MINIMUM WAGE, WAGE DISPARITY, INCOME DISTRIBUTION, SOCIAL STRUCTURE, CENTRALIZED GOVERNMENT, CHINA, FAR EAST ASIA, LABOUR MARKET, LABOUR POLICY

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http://hdl.handle.net/10625/55297

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IDRC Research Results / Résultats de recherches du CRDI
2010-2019 / Années 2010-2019
Research Results (SIG) / Résultats de recherches (CPT)