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The purpose of this paper is to estimate the impact of minimum wages on employment and wages in China.

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.

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.

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.

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.

The TUC is opposed to the decision by the British Government to abolish wages councils, which if successful will worsen the pay and conditions of the 2.6 million workers covered by them, and many other low paid workers who use the rates set as reference points. Drawing on theoretical literature and empirical research, explores the arguments for and against abolition and discusses the case for a statutory national minimum wage. Concludes by arguing that the case for abolition is far from proven on economic and social grounds, and that the introduction of a statutory national minimum wage, combined with other active labour market intervention by the Government, is needed to overcome the problem of low pay.

Minimum wage fixing came to be increasingly questioned during the 1980s owing to high unemployment and the rise of liberal economic thinking. This led many countries to dilute minimum wage protection by freezing the rates or altering the coverage. However, close examination of the relevant research reveals that empirical support for the criticisms of minimum wages is fairly weak and fragmented. At the end of the 1980s and beginning of the 1990s, many countries, Great Britain being a notable exception, pursued a more active minimum wage policy. Concludes with a re‐examination of the goals and form of minimum wage legislation in the light of recent history.

Presents a theoretical approach to analysing the effects of minimum wages on employment which is intended to conform more with the functioning of actual labour markets than do other popular models traditionally used to analyse the likely effects of minimum wages on employment. The model has the desirable property of not only allowing for the negative effect predicted by conventional models, but also permiting a non‐negative impact which is consistent with several recent empirical pieces of work. Examines the employment effects of the industry‐level system of minimum wages which operated in the UK until September 1993. Results reported are not in line with the orthodox model as they suggest a neutral or positive impact of Wages Council minimum wages on employment between 1978 and 1990.

Much of the recent debate on the minimum wage has focused on its employment implications. The theory of human capital suggests that minimum wages should also have important adverse effects on human capital accumulation. In the standard human capital theory, as developed by Becker (1964), Ben-Porath (1967), and Mincer (1974), a large part of human capital is accumulated on the job, and workers often finance these investments through lower wages. A binding minimum wage will therefore reduce workplace training, as it prevents low wage workers from accepting the necessary wage cuts (Rosen, 1972). The early empirical literature has confirmed this prediction. The negative impact on human capital formation has been an important argument against minimum wages in the minds of many economists and policy-makers, and an important piece of evidence in support of the standard theory of human capital.

Briefly identifies the different Conventions and Recommendations of the International Labour Organization pertaining to national wage policy matters. Introduces some of the issues which need study when considering the social and economic effects of minimum wages, outlining the different roles that minimum wage fixing seeks to achieve. Concludes by considering some of the broader issues relating to labour standards, low pay and competitiveness. Argues that, in a market environment where competition is based increasingly on process and product development, a low‐pay strategy concentrating on the price of labour – and not on research and development and product design and quality – will be deficient. Suggests that economic innovation and dynamism cannot be derived from making labour cheaper, but by rendering it more productive, and that, to achieve this, a national general minimum floor to wages and other terms and conditions of employment are necessary.

Examines the employment effects of minimum wage regulation on Greek manufacturing for the period 1962‐87. The empirical analysis is carried out in three steps. First, estimates the effect of the minimum wage on the average wages of adult male and female industrial workers to derive estimates of wage elasticities of each type of labour with respect to the minimum wage. Second, estimates labour demand equations for the two types of labour to derive the employment elasticities with respect to the corresponding average wage. Finally, provides estimates on the employment effects of the minimum wage by combining the results derived in the first two stages. The results provide some indications that the minimum wage plays a more significant role in the employment of female than male workers in manufacturing, and suggest that minimum wages positively affect the average real wage of both types of workers examined.

This paper examines disemployment effects of minimum wages during the period 2002–2010.

The authors employ the discontinuity design.

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.

The authors attempt to reconcile the debate about the effects of minimum wages on US employment.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of collectively agreed increases in minimum wages for manual workers on employment transitions and hours.

The econometric approach relies on the identification of workers affected by minimum wage changes, depending on their position in the wage distribution and contrasts outcomes for these workers to those for unaffected workers, with slightly higher wages.

The analysis suggests that separations increase as minimum wages increase and that substitution between worker groups in response to changes in minimum wages is important in retail. In general, though, hours do not change much as minimum wages increase.

Analyses that deal with employment consequences of increasing minimum wages but disregard hours may exaggerate the overall decline in employment to the extent that job losses are concentrated among low-paid, part-time workers.

With union-bargained minimum wages, unions and employers need to carefully consider the effects of increasing rates on employment.

The findings that there is a trade-off between higher wages among the low-paid and employment loss and that employment to some extent is reshuffled between individuals should be important from a welfare perspective.

The literature on employment effects of minimum wages is large, but very few studies are concerned with union-bargained minimum wages. The assumptions of the econometric model are tested in a novel way by imposing fictitious minimum wages on lower-level non-manuals in the same industry, with turnover characteristics similar to those of manuals but covered by a different collective agreement with non-binding actual minimum wages.

The objective of this study is to construct a theoretical framework concerning wage determination, grounded in principles and supplemented by conventional theories. It discusses the Islamic perspectives on minimum wage and examines contemporary challenges and intricacies in its application.

This study uses thematic analysis to create the conceptual framework, drawing upon a review of pertinent literature such as academic papers, books and articles published up to 2023.

The framework encompasses various categories, namely, employee characteristics, job characteristics, market factors, compensation practices and Islamic principles. Each category consists of multiple variables. The resulting framework offers a holistic and ethically grounded methodology for wage determination, aligning with both Islamic and conventional perspectives. This study notes the absence of a universally agreed-upon minimum wage. Islamic economics faces challenges due to the unclear application of principles, limited awareness, legal constraints and a lack of empirical evidence on wage systems, along with complexities in their implementation.

The paper’s limited scope focuses solely on the Islamic perspective on wage determination, without comparing it to the conventional viewpoint. This may have implications for future research.

The insights on Islamic principles and wage determination guide scholars and policymakers interested in promoting just and equitable wages.

This study is distinct in its integration of various factors to propose an all-encompassing framework for wage determination, rooted in the Quran and principles, while also reinforcing the framework with conventional theories. Additionally, it adds to the growing body of literature by investigating the Quran’s stance and principles on minimum wage, as well as discusses the challenges involved in implementing an Islamic approach to wage determination, which has received limited attention in Islamic literature.