Media reports on UMaine minimum wage study
Tech and Science Post, Medical XPress and African News Herald reported on a University of Maine study that found increasing the minimum wage generally harms low-educated, low-income men’s health and improves women’s health in the same demographic categories. The study found that a 10% increase in the minimum wage — approximately $0.72, based on the mean minimum wage level during the sample period — improved women’s general health and reduced their physical and mental health burdens. However, the results for men were more complicated. While higher minimum wages increased men’s physical and mental health burdens, the effect on men’s general health was ambiguous. “Our results demonstrate that raising the minimum wage implies tradeoffs between the health of men and women. Finding an appropriate balance requires a value judgment; there is no definitive correct answer. We hope that our work will inform policymakers’ thinking as they consider changes to the minimum wage,” says Liam Sigaud, a recent graduate of UMaine’s master’s program in economics and lead author of the study.