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The Impact of Minimum Wage Increases on Infant Health: Evidence from Türkiye's 2016 Wage Hike

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  • Hiziroglu Aygun, Aysun
  • Karaca-Mandic, Pinar

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of a significant minimum wage increase in Türkiye on infant birth weight and neonatal health. We utilize data from the Türkiye Demographic and Health Survey to investigate the birth outcomes of babies exposed to a 30% minimum wage hike during pregnancy. Leveraging variation in the predicted probability that a household includes a minimum-wage earner, we estimate a difference-in-differences model to identify the causal effect of prenatal exposure to the minimum wage increase. Our analysis reveals that exposure to a higher minimum wage during pregnancy significantly increases birth weight and reduces the likelihood of low birth weight (

Suggested Citation

  • Hiziroglu Aygun, Aysun & Karaca-Mandic, Pinar, 2025. "The Impact of Minimum Wage Increases on Infant Health: Evidence from Türkiye's 2016 Wage Hike," EconStor Preprints 329823, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:esprep:329823
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs

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