Correction to: (Un)beliveable wages? An analysis of minimum wage policies in Europe from a living wage perspective

1 Correction to: IZA journal of labor policy (2017) 6:4 DOI: 10.1186/s40173-017-0083-3

In the original version of this article (Fabo & Belli, 2017), published on 16 March 2017, the values for Minimum Wages (MW) in the Table 2 are incorrect. This also affected both the paragraph describing the values in Table 2 and Fig. 2. In this Correction the incorrect and correct version of Table 2, of its accompanying paragraph and of Fig. 2 are shown.

The original (incorrect) version of Table 2:

Table 2 Comparison of living and minimum wage

The corrected version of Table 2:

Table 2 Comparison of living and minimum wage

The paragraph describing the values in Table 2 originally read:

In the Northwestern EU countries (Benelux, Germany, France, UK), even the upper range of LW rarely overcomes 80% of the MW threshold and the lower threshold can even go below 50%. In other words, in the core countries, MW earners can secure basic living necessities and still have 20–50% for additional expenses or savings. MW earners can afford to live in relative comfort, even though life in those countries is not cheap—- the LW tends to amount to about 1000 EUR or more. Nonetheless, with MW starting at over 1300 EUR in the Netherlands and reaching up to over 1800 EUR in Germany, the MW earners are able to cover their needs. Among the peripheral countries, the upper LW threshold is above MW.

The paragraph describing the values in Table 2 actually should read:

In the Northwestern EU countries (Benelux, Germany, France, UK), even the upper range of LW rarely overcomes 80% of the MW threshold and the lower threshold can down to nearly 50%. In other words, in the core countries, MW earners can secure basic living necessities and still have 20–50% for additional expenses or savings. MW earners can afford to live in relative comfort, even though life in those countries is not cheap—the LW tends to amount to about 1000 EUR or more. Nonetheless, with MW starting at nearly 1400 EUR in the United Kingdom and reaching up to over 1550 EUR in the Netherlands, the MW earners are able to cover their needs. Among the peripheral countries, the upper LW threshold is above MW.

The original (incorrect) version of Fig. 2.

Fig. 2

Graphical distribution of countries based on individual MW and LW. Source: own calculation based on WI from December 2016. Q1 2017 Eurostat data used for MWs

In connection to correction of the values in Table 2, the correct Fig. 2 should look like this.

Fig. 2

Graphical distribution of countries based on individual MW and LW. Source: own calculation based on WI from December 2016. Q1 2017 Eurostat data used for MWs

The authors would like to sincerely thank an attentive reader who wishes to remain anonymous for making us aware of the error.