Minimum Wage: What’s Next? Heather D. Hill WCPC Poverty Summit • September 29, 2015
Agenda > The Minimum Wage Study: Seattle > What do we know about minimum wage policy effects? > What do we need to know? > What other policies could help?
The Minimum Wage Study: Seattle > Multi-year evaluation of minimum wage law in Seattle – What are the effects on workers and families, employers, and the local economy ? > Funded through City of Seattle evaluation contract and grants from national foundations > UW Investigators : Scott Allard, Heather Hill, Mark Long, Jennifer Otten, Robert Plotnick, Jennie Romich, and Jake Vigdor > WA-ESD Investigators : Scott Bailey and Anneliese Vance-Sherman
Our approach > Examine a broad set of outcomes > Expect a complex story > Use multiple data sources and techniques to disentangle the story – Employer survey – Qualitative study of low-wage workers with children – Analysis of state administrative data on employment, earnings, & public assistance – Web and in-person price data collection > Produce rigorous evidence that is useful for Seattle and other cities
What do we know about minimum wage policies? > Most research on federal and state minimum wage policies > Focused on employment & earnings outcomes > Rigorous but inconclusive evidence base ? + ? ? ?
What do we need to know?
What other policies could help? > Workplace regulations: Improving the quality of lower-wage jobs > Family leave: Providing economic security around the birth of a child > Education & training: Identifying paths to better jobs > Public assistance: Reducing instability while promoting mobility
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