Minimum Wages and Monopsony Power: MichalReichFest. June 6, 2025. Learn more: irle.berkeley.edu/events
Virtual registration is still open for the "Minimum Wages & Monopsony Power" conference! Featuring an all-star lineup of labor economists, this one-day event also honors career of Dr. Michael Reich.
📅 June 6, 2025 | 8am - 5pm
🔗 Register today: irle.berkeley.edu/events/minim...
New report on California's $20 fast food minimum wage using D-in-D and DDD: 8-9 percent wage increases, no effects on employment and a 1.5 percent minimum wage increase: irle.berkeley.edu/publications...
Blog updated to v2 this morning.
Lots of useful developments from ASSA that, for @shirkandsteal.bsky.social @jennifercohen.bsky.social & I, show a path to meaningful participation in #ASSA2025 even if there are picket lines.
I thank @lkatz42.bsky.social & team for leading to practical solutions.
A newly precise null result on whether Medicaid induces cross-state migration, in an extensive job market paper by Carl McPherson. carlmcpherson.github.io
A short write-up by @petercoy here:
static.nytimes.com/email-conten...
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Oh, and we did not detect any effects on employment.
6/7
About 70 percent of the increased costs were passed on in higher prices, suggesting reduced restaurant profit margins. Higher prices likely raised restaurant revenue, implying franchise owners will pay larger royalty fees to their parent companies.
5/7
The policy increased prices by around 3.7 percent—about 15 cents for a $4 cheeseburger.
4/7
Results: The policy increased average hourly pay by a remarkable 18 percent.
3/7
We use diff-in-diff methods, novel restaurant data from over 35,000 jobs posted on Glassdoor, and collect price data from 1,585 restaurants in CA and 1,694 restaurants in control states.
2/7
Hey #EconSky📉📈 our new working paper with Michael Reich @IRLE is out!
Sectoral Wage-Setting in California
We provide the first causal evidence of the (highest in the US) $20 minimum wage for large fast-food chains in California, implemented on April 1, 2024.
irle.berkeley.edu/publications...
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