Do Minimum Wage Increases Influence Worker Health?

This study investigates whether minimum wage increases in the United States affect an important non-market outcome: worker health. To study this question, we use data on lesser-skilled workers from the 1993-2014 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Surveys coupled with differences-in-differences and triple-difference models. We find little evidence that minimum wage increases lead to improvements in overall worker health. In fact, we find some evidence that minimum wage increases may decrease some aspects of health, especially among unemployed male workers. We also find evidence that increases reduce mental strain among employed workers.

Keywords: minimum wage, self-reported health, differences-in-differences

JEL Classification: I1, I11, I18

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Horn, Brady and Maclean, Johanna Catherine and Strain, Michael, Do Minimum Wage Increases Influence Worker Health? (January 2017). IZA Discussion Paper No. 10479, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2903101 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2903101