The minimum wage in the national economy: reasons and changes in Poland
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.12775/EiP.2021.026Keywords
minimum wage, public finance, Polish economyAbstract
Motivation: The minimum wage protect employees from excessively low wages. It helps ensure fair participation in economic development for the general public. The minimum wage in the economy is an essential element in a country’s economic policy. Decisions concerning the implementation and changes in the minimum wage are part of the socio-economic policy of the state. Research on minimum wage relate to its overall impact on the level and structure of wages, employment, productivity at work, the size of the gray economy, the level of poverty and public finances. Factors affecting changes in the minimum wage are formal and non-formal. The question therefore arises which factors are decisive in the Polish economy.
Aim: The aim of this paper is to present the essence and causes of changes in the minimum wage in Poland in 2003–2020 with particular regard to formal and non-formal aspects.
Results: On the basis of research carried out in Poland, a link between minimum wage and inflation was observed. There is also a fundamental relationship between the minimum wage and average wages in the economy. It has been shown that the minimum wage is not without significance for the impact on public finance sector in Poland.
References
Askenazy, P. (2003). Minimum wage, exports and growth. European Economic Review, 47(1), 147–164. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0014-2921(02)00187-3.
Autor, D.H., Manning, A., & Smith, C.L. (2010). The contribution of the minimum wage to U.S. wage inequality over three decades: a reassessment. NBER Working Papers, 16533, 1–61. https://doi.org/10.3386/w16533.
Bauducco, S., & Janiak A. (2017). The macroeconomic consequences of raising the minimum wage: capital accumulation, employment and the wage distribution. European Economic Review, 101, 57–76. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.euroecorev.2017.09.012.
Braun, C. (2019). Crime and the minimum wage. Review of Economic Dynamics, 32, 122–152. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.red.2019.02.002.
Cahuc, P., & Zylberberg, A. (2004). Labour Economics. Mit Press.
Card, D., & Krueger, A.B. (1994). Minimum wages and employment: a case-study of the fast-food industry in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. American Economic Review, 84(4), 722–793.
CSO. (2021). Macroeconomic data bank. Retrieved 10.09.2021 from https://bdm.stat.gov.pl.
Cunningham, W.(2007). Minimum wages and social policy: lessons for developing countries. Retrieved 10.09.2021 from https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/6760.
Goraus-Tanska, K., & Lewandowski, P. (2016). Minimum wage violation in central and eastern Europe. IZA Discussion Paper, 10098, 1–35.
Holtemöller, O., & Pohle, F. (2019). Employment effects of introducing a minimum wage: the case of Germany. Economic Modelling, 89, 108–121. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.econmod.2019.10.006.
Hungerbuhler, M., & Lehmann, E. (2009). On the optimality of a minimum wage: new insights from optimal tax theory. Journal of Public Economics, 93(3–4), 464–481. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpubeco.2008.11.002.
ILO. (1970). Minimum wage fixing convention (No. 131). Retrieved 10.09.2021 from https://www.ilo.org/dyn/normlex/en/f?p=NORMLEXPUB:12100:0::NO::P12100_ILO_CODE:C131.
ILO. (2011). Domestic workers convention (No. 189). Retrieved 10.09.2021 from https://www.ilo.org/dyn/normlex/en/f?p=NORMLEXPUB:12100:0::NO::P12100_ILO_CODE:C189.
ILO. (2016a). Minimum wage policy guide. Retrieved 10.09.2021 from https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_protect/---protrav/---travail/documents/publication/wcms_508566.pdf.
ILO. (2016b). Minimum wage system. Retrieved 10.09.2021 from https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_norm/---relconf/documents/meetingdocument/wcms_235287.pdf.
ILO. (2020). Should minimum wages apply to all employees. Retrieved 10.09.2020 from https://www.ilo.org/global/topics/wages/minimum-wages/beneficiaries/WCMS_436472/lang--en/index.htm.
Lee, D.S. (1999). Wage inequality in the united states during the 1980s: rising dispersion or falling minimum wage. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 114(3), 977–1023. https://doi.org/10.1162/003355399556197.
MaCurdy, T. (2015). How effective is the minimum wage at supporting the poor. Journal of Political Economy, 123(2), 497–545. https://doi.org/10.1086/679626.
Marinakis, A., & Velasco, J.J. (Eds.). (2006). Para Que Sirve el salario minimo. Organización Internacional del Trabajo.
Neumark, D., & Wascher, W. (2006). Minimum wages and employment: a review of evidence from the new minimum wage research. University of California Irvine Working Papers, 060708, 1–151.
Saget, C. (2001). Poverty reduction and decent work in developing countries: do minimum wages help. International Labour Review, 140(3), 237–269. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1564-913X.2001.tb00532.x.
Ustawa z dnia 10 października 2002 r. o minimalnym wynagrodzeniu za pracę [Act of 10 October 2002 on the minimum wage for work] (Dz.U. 2002 nr 200 poz. 1679) (Poland).
Williams, N., & Mills, J.A. (1998). Minimum wage effects by gender. Journal of Labor Research, 19, 397–414. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12122-998-1022-2.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2021 Rafał Rosiński
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Stats
Number of views and downloads: 992
Number of citations: 0
