ifo Schnelldienst 06/2008 Special issue: "Minimum Wage: Pro and Contra"

Does a general minimum wage offer protection from foreign low-wage competition? Does it ensure an income above the poverty line? Or does it destroy jobs and prevent the attainment of a basic livelihood. Are there reliable empirical studies? And what can German policymakers learn from the experience of their European neighbours and the US with minimum wages? Is a guaranteed minimum income via subsidies an alternative? The Ifo Institute asked important and well-known economists in German-speaking countries to give their views. The Ifo Institute hopes to contribute to an objective discussion of the minimum wage issue with this collection of arguments for and against a minimum wage fixed by the government and that takes into account labour market theory, behavioural economics as well as the legal aspects In addition to members of the Council of German Economic Experts, the presidents and directors of several economic institutes, contributions have also been submitted by former and current heads of important economic-policy groups as well as by internationally acclaimed economists.