IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/zbw/ciwdps/32017.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Minimum wages and vocational training incentives in Germany

Author

Listed:
  • Kellermann, Kim Leonie

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of sector-specific minimum wages in Germany on the willingness of youths to undergo vocational training. The theoretical impact of wage floors on educational incentives is ambiguous: on the one hand, they raise the opportunity cost of education and prevent further skill accumulation. On the other hand, they lower the employment probability of unskilled workers which promotes additional training. We use a GSOEP-based sample of youths aged 17 to 24, covering a time period between 1994 and 2014 in order to estimate the probability of opting for an apprenticeship employing a mixed logit model. Contrasting with evidence from other countries, we find that increasing sectoral wage floors have a positive effect on already high training probabilities of youths. In case of binding minimum wages, demand for unskilled workers declines which lowers the opportunity cost of education. This effect is reinforced by high requirements concerning professional skills.

Suggested Citation

  • Kellermann, Kim Leonie, 2017. "Minimum wages and vocational training incentives in Germany," CIW Discussion Papers 3/2017, University of Münster, Center for Interdisciplinary Economics (CIW).
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:ciwdps:32017
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/168471/1/897210476.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Antonczyk, Dirk & Fitzenberger, Bernd & Sommerfeld, Katrin, 2010. "Rising wage inequality, the decline of collective bargaining, and the gender wage gap," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 17(5), pages 835-847, October.
    2. Bernd Fitzenberger & Karsten Kohn & Qingwei Wang, 2011. "The erosion of union membership in Germany: determinants, densities, decompositions," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 24(1), pages 141-165, January.
    3. Hyslop, Dean & Stillman, Steven, 2007. "Youth minimum wage reform and the labour market in New Zealand," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 14(2), pages 201-230, April.
    4. Daron Acemoglu & Jörn-Steffen Pischke, 1998. "Why Do Firms Train? Theory and Evidence," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 113(1), pages 79-119.
    5. David Neumark & William Wascher, 2004. "Minimum Wages, Labor Market Institutions, and Youth Employment: A Cross-National Analysis," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 57(2), pages 223-248, January.
    6. Bernhard Boockmann & Raimund Krumm & Michael Neumann & Pia Rattenhuber, 2013. "Turning the Switch: An Evaluation of the Minimum Wage in the German Electrical Trade Using Repeated Natural Experiments," German Economic Review, Verein für Socialpolitik, vol. 14(3), pages 316-348, August.
    7. Hanna Frings, 2013. "The Employment Effect of Industry-Specific, Collectively Bargained Minimum Wages," German Economic Review, Verein für Socialpolitik, vol. 14(3), pages 258-281, August.
    8. Patricia Rice, 2010. "Minimum Wages and Schooling: Evidence from the UK's Introduction of a National Minimum Wage," Economics Series Working Papers 482, University of Oxford, Department of Economics.
    9. Checchi,Daniele, 2008. "The Economics of Education," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521066464.
    10. Eichhorst, Werner & Marx, Paul, 2009. "Reforming German Labor Market Institutions: A Dual Path to Flexibility," IZA Discussion Papers 4100, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    11. Neumark, David & Wascher, William, 2003. "Minimum wages and skill acquisition: another look at schooling effects," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 1-10, February.
    12. Chaplin, Duncan D. & Turner, Mark D. & Pape, Andreas D., 2003. "Minimum wages and school enrollment of teenagers: a look at the 1990's," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 11-21, February.
    13. David Hensher & William Greene, 2003. "The Mixed Logit model: The state of practice," Transportation, Springer, vol. 30(2), pages 133-176, May.
    14. Neumark, David & Wascher, William, 1995. "Minimum Wage Effects on Employment and School Enrollment," Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, American Statistical Association, vol. 13(2), pages 199-206, April.
    15. Michele Campolieti & Tony Fang & Morley Gunderson, 2003. "How Minimum Wages Affect Schooling-Employment Outcomes in Canada, 1993-1999," Journal of Labor Research, Transaction Publishers, vol. 26(3), pages 533-545, August.
    16. David Revelt & Kenneth Train, 1998. "Mixed Logit With Repeated Choices: Households' Choices Of Appliance Efficiency Level," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 80(4), pages 647-657, November.
    17. Bruno Palier & Kathleen Thelen, 2010. "Institutionalizing Dualism: Complementarities and Change in France and Germany," Politics & Society, , vol. 38(1), pages 119-148, March.
    18. Christian Dustmann & Johannes Ludsteck & Uta Schönberg, 2009. "Revisiting the German Wage Structure," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 124(2), pages 843-881.
    19. Stuart Landon, 1997. "High School Enrollment, Minimum Wages and Education Spending," Canadian Public Policy, University of Toronto Press, vol. 23(2), pages 141-163, June.
    20. Pacheco, Gail A. & Cruickshank, Amy A., 2007. "Minimum wage effects on educational enrollments in New Zealand," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 26(5), pages 574-587, October.
    21. Thelen,Kathleen, 2004. "How Institutions Evolve," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521837682.
    22. Ronald G. Ehrenberg & Alan J. Marcus, 1982. "Minimum Wages and Teenagers' Enrollment-Employment Outcomes: A Multinomial Logit Model," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 17(1), pages 39-58.
    23. Thelen,Kathleen, 2004. "How Institutions Evolve," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521546744.
    24. Neumark, David & Wascher, William, 1995. "Minimum-Wage Effects on School and Work Transitions of Teenagers," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 85(2), pages 244-249, May.
    25. Eichhorst, Werner & Marx, Paul, 2009. "From the Dual Apprenticeship System to a Dual Labor Market? The German High-Skill Equilibrium and the Service Economy," IZA Discussion Papers 4220, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    26. Pia Rattenhuber, 2014. "Building the minimum wage: the distributional impact of Germany’s first sectoral minimum wage on wages and hours across different wage bargaining regimes," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 46(4), pages 1429-1446, June.
    27. Agell, Jonas & Lommerud, Kjell Erik, 1997. "Minimum wages and the incentives for skill formation," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(1), pages 25-40, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Bossler, Mario & Gürtzgen, Nicole & Lochner, Benjamin & Betzl, Ute & Feist, Lisa & Wegmann, Jakob, 2018. "Auswirkungen des gesetzlichen Mindestlohns auf Betriebe und Unternehmen," IAB-Forschungsbericht 201804, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany].
    2. Bossler, Mario & Gürtzgen, Nicole & Lochner, Benjamin & Betzl, Ute & Feist, Lisa, 2018. "The German minimum wage: Effects on business expectations, profitability, and investments," FAU Discussion Papers in Economics 13/2018, Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg, Institute for Economics.
    3. Bossler Mario & Gürtzgen Nicole & Betzl Ute & Feist Lisa & Lochner Benjamin, 2020. "The German Minimum Wage: Effects on Productivity, Profitability, and Investments," Journal of Economics and Statistics (Jahrbuecher fuer Nationaloekonomie und Statistik), De Gruyter, vol. 240(2-3), pages 321-350, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Patricia Rice, 2010. "Minimum Wages and Schooling: Evidence from the UK's Introduction of a National Minimum Wage," Economics Series Working Papers 482, University of Oxford, Department of Economics.
    2. Alessandrini, Diana & Milla, Joniada, 2021. "Minimum Wage Effects on Human Capital Accumulation: Evidence from Canadian Data," IZA Discussion Papers 14178, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    3. Pacheco, Gail A. & Cruickshank, Amy A., 2007. "Minimum wage effects on educational enrollments in New Zealand," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 26(5), pages 574-587, October.
    4. Ochsenfeld, Fabian, 2018. "The Relational Nature of Employment Dualization: Evidence from Subcontracting Establishments," SocArXiv ta4r6, Center for Open Science.
    5. Cardoso, Ana Rute, 2009. "Long-Term Impact of Youth Minimum Wages: Evidence from Two Decades of Individual Longitudinal Data," IZA Discussion Papers 4236, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    6. Smith, Alexander A., 2021. "The minimum wage and teen educational attainment," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    7. Marco Caliendo & Carsten Schröder & Linda Wittbrodt, 2019. "The Causal Effects of the Minimum Wage Introduction in Germany – An Overview," German Economic Review, Verein für Socialpolitik, vol. 20(3), pages 257-292, August.
    8. Marco Caliendo & Alexandra Fedorets & Malte Preuss & Carsten Schröder & Linda Wittbrodt, 2017. "The Short-Term Distributional Effects of the German Minimum Wage Reform," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 948, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    9. Schumann, Mathias, 2017. "The effects of minimum wages on firm-financed apprenticeship training," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 163-181.
    10. Lance Wescher & Travis Hutchinson & Anna Rannou, 2019. "Minimum Wages, Employment, and College Enrollment," The American Economist, Sage Publications, vol. 64(1), pages 3-18, March.
    11. Werner Eichhorst & Michael J. Kendzia, 2016. "Workforce segmentation in Germany: from the founding era to the present time [Die Segmentierung der Belegschaft in Deutschland: von der Gründerzeit bis heute]," Journal for Labour Market Research, Springer;Institute for Employment Research/ Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), vol. 49(4), pages 297-315, December.
    12. Chang Hyung Lee, 2020. "Minimum Wage Policy and Community College Enrollment Patterns," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 73(1), pages 178-210, January.
    13. Schmitz, Sebastian, 2017. "The effects of Germany's new minimum wage on employment and welfare dependency," Discussion Papers 2017/21, Free University Berlin, School of Business & Economics.
    14. Stephanie O. Crofton & William L. Anderson & Emily C. Rawe, 2009. "Do Higher Real Minimum Wages Lead to More High School Dropouts? Evidence from Maryland Across Races, 1993–2004," American Journal of Economics and Sociology, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 68(2), pages 445-464, April.
    15. Chaplin, Duncan D. & Turner, Mark D. & Pape, Andreas D., 2003. "Minimum wages and school enrollment of teenagers: a look at the 1990's," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 11-21, February.
    16. Malte Luebker, 2019. "Can the Structure of Inequality Explain Fiscal Redistribution? Revisiting the Social Affinity Hypothesis," LIS Working papers 762, LIS Cross-National Data Center in Luxembourg.
    17. Dirk Antonczyk & Thomas DeLeire & Bernd Fitzenberger, 2018. "Polarization and Rising Wage Inequality: Comparing the U.S. and Germany," Econometrics, MDPI, vol. 6(2), pages 1-33, April.
    18. Uwe Jirjahn, 2015. "Research on Trade Unions and Collective Bargaining in Germany: The Contribution of Labor Economics," Research Papers in Economics 2015-10, University of Trier, Department of Economics.
    19. David Neumark & Olena Nizalova, 2007. "Minimum Wage Effects in the Longer Run," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 42(2).
    20. Busemeyer, Marius R., 2011. "Varieties of cross-class coalitions in the politics of dualization: Insights from the case of vocational training in Germany," MPIfG Discussion Paper 11/13, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • C33 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models; Multiple Variables - - - Models with Panel Data; Spatio-temporal Models
    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • I28 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Government Policy
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:zbw:ciwdps:32017. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/ilmuede.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.