PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - David Neumark
AU  - Mark Schweitzer
AU  - William Wascher
TI  - The Effects of Minimum Wages on the Distribution of Family Incomes
AID  - 10.3368/jhr.XL.4.867
DP  - 2005 Oct 02
TA  - Journal of Human Resources
PG  - 867--894
VI  - XL
IP  - 4
4099  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/XL/4/867.short
4100  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/XL/4/867.full
SO  - J Hum Resour2005 Oct 02; XL
AB  - An oft-stated goal of the minimum wage is to raise incomes of poor or low-income families. We present nonparametric estimates of the effects of minimum wages on the distribution of family income relative to needs in the United States. Although minimum wages increase the incomes of some poor families, the evidence indicates that their overall net effect is, if anything, to increase the proportions of families with incomes below or near the poverty line. It would appear that reductions in the proportions of families that are poor or near-poor should not be counted among the potential benefits of minimum wages.