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The minimum wage, employment, and the AS-IF methodology: A forecasting approach to evaluating the minimum wage

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Abstract.

Out-of-sample employment forecasts for 33 U.S. industries which are likely to be sensitive to the federal minimum wage are, more often than not, more accurate when information about the minimum wage is not taken into account. This is true even in instances where this information improves wage forecasts. When employment forecasts conditional on the minimum wage are better, the improvement is typically small. These results are invariant to the number of workers previously making less than the new minimum wage, and to the value of the minimum wage relative to industry average wages.

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First version received: August 1999/Final version received: July 2000

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Wolfson, P., Belman, D. The minimum wage, employment, and the AS-IF methodology: A forecasting approach to evaluating the minimum wage. Empirical Economics 26, 487–514 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1007/s001810000067

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s001810000067

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