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When workers do not know – The behavioral effects of minimum wage laws revisited

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  • Wang, Xianghong

Abstract

Previous experimental results have shown that the introduction of a minimum wage increases wages in a monopsonistic labor market. The results rely on the assumption that the minimum wage laws are common knowledge among employers and workers, which is often violated in less developed labor markets. This paper examines the effect of asymmetric knowledge about the minimum wage, and its interaction with the level of the minimum wage standard. We find that, whether the workers have knowledge about the minimum wage significantly changes the behavioral impacts of the minimum wage policy. With common knowledge, most firms offer wages beyond the minimum wage level. When workers do not know about the minimum wage policy, many firms, including those who used to pay higher wages before the introduction of the policy, choose to pay wages at the minimum level or lower their offers toward the minimum level. This causes the introduction of the minimum wage not effective in increasing average wages when the minimum wage standard is low. Therefore, a low minimum wage under asymmetric knowledge may potentially have a negative spillover effect on wages. The asymmetric knowledge also affects the employment level negatively. These findings help explain why the impacts of minimum wage are different in labor markets where workers have different degree of information access. This has strong implications for the implementation and welfare impacts of minimum wage laws.

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  • Wang, Xianghong, 2012. "When workers do not know – The behavioral effects of minimum wage laws revisited," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 33(5), pages 951-962.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:joepsy:v:33:y:2012:i:5:p:951-962
    DOI: 10.1016/j.joep.2012.05.004
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    Cited by:

    1. Wenkai Sun & Xianghong Wang & Xiaoxi Zhang, 2015. "Minimum wage effects on employment and working time of Chinese workers——evidence based on CHNS," IZA Journal of Labor & Development, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 4(1), pages 1-22, December.
    2. Fontagné, Lionel & Limardi, Michela, 2024. "The Generalized System of Preferences and NGO activism," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 166(C).
    3. Alunica Morariu, 2019. "Migration and Asylum Policy Within EU. Causes, Needs, Strategic Policy and Evolutions," Ovidius University Annals, Economic Sciences Series, Ovidius University of Constantza, Faculty of Economic Sciences, vol. 0(2), pages 148-157, December.
    4. Haroon Bhorat & Tara Caetano & Benjamin Jourdan & Ravi Kanbur & Christopher Rooney & Benjamin Stanwix & Ingrid Woolard, 2016. "Investigating the Feasibility of a National Minimum Wage for South Africa," Working Papers 201601, University of Cape Town, Development Policy Research Unit.
    5. Kocher, Martin G. & Martinsson, Peter & Persson, Emil & Wang, Xianghong, 2016. "Is there a hidden cost of imposing a minimum contribution level for public good contributions?," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 74-84.
    6. Zahra Murad & Robert Dowell, 2020. "Foreign visa salary requirement and natives’ reservation wages," Working Papers in Economics & Finance 2020-06, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth Business School, Economics and Finance Subject Group.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Minimum wage; Fairness; Employment; Asymmetric information;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J08 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - Labor Economics Policies
    • J3 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs
    • D03 - Microeconomics - - General - - - Behavioral Microeconomics: Underlying Principles

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