Do State-mandated Minimum Wages Reduce Gender Wage Inequality in the United States?

Gender Disparities in the Welfare Effect of the Minimum Wage ∗

Gendered Effects of the Minimum Wage

Women work disproportionately in low‐hours jobs, which pay lower wages and are more exposed to minimum‐wage policies. We estimate an equilibrium search model with worker and firm heterogeneity, jobs differing in wages and hours, and imperfect compliance. Applied to Germany, the 8.50 € minimum wage reallocates women t...

A Fracturing Wage Floor? Below-Minimum Wages in the Twenty-First Century

Recent data suggest a growing prevalence and magnitude of below-minimum wages, including minimum-wage violations, in the United States in the twenty-first century. In the 10 most populous states, the incidence of likely minimum wage violations reached its highest level in 2025. Among workers experiencing violations, th...

Working Paper No. 2023-11 Gender Differences in Reservation Wages in Search Experiments

The Effect of State Minimum Wage Increases on Restaurant Employment in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho from 2014 to 2024

: State minimum wage increases remain contested because credible studies report different employment effects, especially in low-wage sectors such as restaurants. This paper examines restaurant employment in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho from 2014 to 2024, a period of large cumulative minimum wage increases in Washingto...

Institutions, education, and the gender wage gap across US states

This study examines how gender earnings ratios (GERs) vary across US states from 2010 to 2020, focusing on the role of labour market institutions while accounting for differences in educational attainment. We estimate state-level GERs using Mincer-type earnings regressions and examine their relationship with labour mar...