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Does a One-Size-Fits-All Minimum Wage Cause Financial Stress for Small Businesses?

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  • Sudheer Chava
  • Alexander Oettl
  • Manpreet Singh

Abstract

Do increases in federal minimum wage impact the financial health of small businesses? Using intertemporal variation in whether a state’s minimum wage is bound by the federal rate and credit-score data for approximately 15.2 million establishments for the period 1989–2013, we find that increases in the federal minimum wage worsen the financial health of small businesses in the affected states. Small, young, labor-intensive, minimum-wage sensitive establishments located in the states bound to the federal minimum wage and those located in competitive and low-income areas experience higher financial stress. Increases in the minimum wage also lead to lower bank credit, higher loan defaults, lower employment, a lower entry and a higher exit rate for small businesses. The results are robust to using nearest-neighbor matching and geographic regression discontinuity design. Our results document some potential costs of a one-size-fits-all nationwide minimum wage, and we highlight how it can have an adverse effect on the financial health of some small businesses.

Suggested Citation

  • Sudheer Chava & Alexander Oettl & Manpreet Singh, 2019. "Does a One-Size-Fits-All Minimum Wage Cause Financial Stress for Small Businesses?," NBER Working Papers 26523, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:26523
    Note: CF LS POL PR
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    Cited by:

    1. Lu, Bing & Yang, Xu & Yu, Xinding, 2025. "Minimum wage, foreign firm exit and export: Heterogeneity in investment motivation," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 948-970.
    2. repec:aei:rpaper:1008582843 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Liu, Guanchun & Liu, Yuanyuan & Zhang, Chengsi, 2022. "Tax enforcement and corporate employment: Evidence from a quasi-natural experiment in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    4. Liu, Guanchun & Liu, Yuanyuan & Zhang, Chengsi & Zhu, Yueteng, 2021. "Social insurance law and corporate financing decisions in China," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 190(C), pages 816-837.
    5. Drucker, Lev & Mazirov, Katya & Neumark, David, 2021. "Who pays for and who benefits from minimum wage increases? Evidence from Israeli tax data on business owners and workers," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 199(C).
    6. Xiang, Junyi & Zhu, Ling & Kong, Dongmin, 2023. "Labor cost and corporate tax avoidance," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 205(C), pages 338-358.
    7. Glenn Hubbard & Michael R. Strain, 2020. "Has the Paycheck Protection Program Succeeded?," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 51(3 (Fall)), pages 335-390.
    8. Priyaranjan Jha & Antonio Rodriguez-Lopez, 2021. "Minimum Wage and Employer Variety," CESifo Working Paper Series 9312, CESifo.
    9. Deng, Lixing & Lai, Shaojie & Liu, Shiang & Pu, Xiaoling, 2022. "Social insurance premiums and corporate cash holdings: Evidence from social insurance law in China," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 114(C).
    10. Alexandre, F. & Bação, P. & Cerejeira, J. & Costa, H. & Portela, M., 2022. "Minimum wage and financially distressed firms: Another one bites the dust," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).

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    JEL classification:

    • G33 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Bankruptcy; Liquidation
    • G38 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Government Policy and Regulation
    • J30 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - General

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