Working Paper: NBER ID: w18055
Authors: David Neumark; Matthew Thompson; Francesco Brindisi; Leslie Koyle; Clayton Reck
Abstract: Policy researchers often have to estimate the future effect of imposing a policy in a particular location. There is often historical information on the effects of similar policies in other jurisdictions, but no information on the effects of the policy in the jurisdiction in question, and the policy may have specific features not reflected in the experiences of other areas. It is then necessary to combine the historical evidence from other locations with information and data specific to the jurisdiction in question. In this paper, we illustrate and use this approach in estimating the impact of a proposed living wage mandate for New York City. We explain how we combined elements of "ex ante" evaluations of living wage laws with before-and-after (longitudinal) estimates of the effects of living wage laws. We also incorporate detailed location-specific information on workers, families, and employers using administrative data and other new public data sources.
Keywords: Living Wage; Labor Markets; Policy Evaluation
JEL Codes: J18; J23; J38
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Living wage laws (J38) | Wages in the bottom decile (J31) |
| Living wage laws (J38) | Employment in the bottom decile (J31) |
| Living wage laws (J38) | Wages for affected workers (J39) |
| Living wage laws (J38) | Disemployment effects (J65) |