AFP, Frankfurt :
Productivity by German workers has increased since the country introduced a minimum wage in 2015, a study published Tuesday by Anglo-German researchers showed.
“Contrary to concerns that marked the debate before the national minimum wage was introduced, we did not find that it led to a reduction in employment,” University College London (UCL) researcher Christian Dustmann said in a statement.
“On the contrary, the minimum wage increased productivity by redistributing workers from less productive to more productive companies,” Dustmann added.
Once the minimum wage was introduced, some low-wage employees moved to bigger companies where more full-time jobs requiring better qualifications were available, the group from UCL and German Institute for Labour Market Research (IAB) found. Such firms also pay a higher wage premium for comparable work.
In regions with the lowest average pay before the minimum wage, the introduction of the legal floor shrank the number of very small businesses with three or fewer employees.
Productivity by German workers has increased since the country introduced a minimum wage in 2015, a study published Tuesday by Anglo-German researchers showed.
“Contrary to concerns that marked the debate before the national minimum wage was introduced, we did not find that it led to a reduction in employment,” University College London (UCL) researcher Christian Dustmann said in a statement.
“On the contrary, the minimum wage increased productivity by redistributing workers from less productive to more productive companies,” Dustmann added.
Once the minimum wage was introduced, some low-wage employees moved to bigger companies where more full-time jobs requiring better qualifications were available, the group from UCL and German Institute for Labour Market Research (IAB) found. Such firms also pay a higher wage premium for comparable work.
In regions with the lowest average pay before the minimum wage, the introduction of the legal floor shrank the number of very small businesses with three or fewer employees.
