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The effect of doubling the minimum wage on employment: evidence from Russia

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  • Alexander Muravyev

    (National Research University Higher School of Economics
    IZA)

  • Aleksey Oshchepkov

    (National Research University Higher School of Economics)

Abstract

We take advantage of a natural experiment in the minimum wage setting in Russia to study the employment consequences of large hikes in the minimum wage. In September 2007, the Russian government raised the federal minimum wage from 1100 to 2300 Rubles and simultaneously gave the regions the power to set their own minima above the federal threshold. In studying the effect of this reform, we follow the approach proposed by David Card and compare changes in employment rates and other labor market outcomes before and after the hike across regions with different shares of affected workers. We find some evidence of adverse effects of the 2007 hike in the minimum wage on employment. They are mostly visible in lower employment rates among the youth, as well as the increased informalization of employment. JEL codes: J38, J23

Suggested Citation

  • Alexander Muravyev & Aleksey Oshchepkov, 2016. "The effect of doubling the minimum wage on employment: evidence from Russia," IZA Journal of Labor & Development, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 5(1), pages 1-20, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:izaldv:v:5:y:2016:i:1:d:10.1186_s40175-016-0051-0
    DOI: 10.1186/s40175-016-0051-0
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    3. Amanda Y. Agan & Michael D. Makowsky, 2023. "The Minimum Wage, EITC, and Criminal Recidivism," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 58(5), pages 1712-1751.
    4. Ham, Andrés, 2018. "The Consequences of Legal Minimum Wages in Honduras," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 135-157.
    5. Işık Enes & Orhangazi Özgür & Tekgüç Hasan, 2020. "Heterogeneous effects of minimum wage on labor market outcomes: A case study from Turkey," IZA Journal of Labor Policy, Sciendo & Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 10(1), pages 1-41, March.
    6. Bozhechkova Alexandra & Trunin Pavel & Knobel Alexander & Firanchuk Alexander & Tsukhlo Sergey & Deryugin Alexander & Lyashok Viktor & Kiyutsevskaya Anna & Arlashkin Igor, 2017. "Monitoring of Russia's Economic Outlook," Monitoring of Russia's Economic Outlook. Trends and Challenges of Socio-Economic Development, Gaidar Institute for Economic Policy, issue 10, pages 1-30, May.
    7. Pantea, Smaranda, 2020. "The effect of minimum wage hikes on employment: Evidence from regional panel data from Romania," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 44(3).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Minimum wages; Unemployment; Informal employment; Russia;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J38 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Public Policy
    • J23 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Demand

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