#laboreconomics

Graeber, D. (2018). Bullshit Jobs, A Theory. Simon & Schuster.

Source: "Labor market impacts of AI: A new measure and early evidence" by Maxim Massenkoff and Peter McCrory (March 2026).

On the couch, studying after work. #laboreconomics #studyblr #studygram https://www.instagram.com/p/CZ-ctDBpL56/?utm_medium=tumblr

[ICYMI 📍🏙🌍] State of Maryland (AMNG) “AJCs offer comprehensive employment, training, and business services. They help job seekers and employers fully participate in the state’s expanding economic recovery. To find the nearest AJC and current information, visit http://labor.maryland.gov/county.” https://cbsloc.al/3eAxxxL#.YP7PQr0Z7tU.twitter Cc : MdLabor #jobsearch #careeradvancement #mdlabormarket #laboreconomics #mdeconomy #mdworkforce (at United States of America) https://www.instagram.com/p/CRy4OmZMQP_/?utm_medium=tumblr

#LaborEconomics #LaborPolicy #phdblr #bookstagram (at Artis Books & Antiques and Uptown Galleries) https://www.instagram.com/p/BxGvCcBBkKNPlDRbhqGvgRMw44VvNy4yw0zR8M0/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=19abz651zdamq

#LaborPolicy #LaborEconomics #thefutureofwork #greennewdeal #whatisagoodjob #MTU #michigantech #phdblr #studyblr #studygram #bestmugever (at Michigan Technological University) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bvt954Bh4US2g4Fh4cmwTcn5pBG7MBmzDdkWeE0/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1qmnrik8sch5z

"The two most common occupations in the United States are retail salesperson and cashier. Eight million people have one of those two jobs, which typically pay about $9–$10 per hour. [..] This is possible because the minimum wage that businesses must pay is low: only $7.25 per hour in the United States in 2016 (although it is higher in some states and cities). At that rate, a person working full-time for a whole year, with no vacations or holidays, earns about $15,000—which is below the poverty line for a family of two, let alone a family of four. A minimum-wage employee is poor enough to qualify for food stamps and, in most states, Medicaid. Adjusted for inflation, the federal minimum is roughly the same as in the 1960s and 1970s, despite significant increases in average living standards over that period. The United States currently has the lowest minimum wage, as a proportion of its average wage, of any advanced economy [..] The idea that a higher minimum wage might not increase unemployment runs directly counter to the lessons of Economics 101. According to the textbook, if labor becomes more expensive, companies buy less of it. But there are several reasons why the real world does not behave so predictably. Although the standard model predicts that employers will replace workers with machines if wages increase, additional labor-saving technologies are not available to every company at a reasonable cost. Small employers in particular have limited flexibility; at their scale, they may not be able to maintain their operations with fewer workers. [..] Therefore, some companies can’t lay off employees if the minimum wage is increased. At the other extreme, very large employers may have enough market power that the usual supply-and-demand model doesn’t apply to them. They can reduce the wage level by hiring fewer workers (only those willing to work for low pay), just as a monopolist can boost prices by cutting production (think of an oil cartel, for example). A minimum wage forces them to pay more, which eliminates the incentive to minimize their workforce. In the above examples, a higher minimum wage will raise labor costs. But many companies can recoup cost increases in the form of higher prices; because most of their customers are not poor, the net effect is to transfer money from higher-income to lower-income families. [..] hiring and training costs, among other things. If fewer people quit their jobs, that also reduces the number of people who are out of work at any one time because they’re looking for something better. A higher minimum wage motivates more people to enter the labor force, raising both employment and output. Finally, higher pay increases workers’ buying power. Because poor people spend a relatively large proportion of their income, a higher minimum wage can boost overall economic activity and stimulate economic growth, creating more jobs. All of these factors vastly complicate the two-dimensional diagram taught in Economics 101 and help explain why a higher minimum wage does not necessarily throw people out of work. The supply-and-demand diagram is a good conceptual starting point for thinking about the minimum wage. But on its own, it has limited predictive value in the much more complex real world. Even if a higher minimum wage does cause some people to lose their jobs, that cost has to be balanced against the benefit of greater earnings for other low-income workers. [..] In short, whether the minimum wage should be increased (or eliminated) is a complicated question. The economic research is difficult to parse, and arguments often turn on sophisticated econometric details. Any change in the minimum wage would have different effects on different groups of people, and should also be compared with other policies that could help the working poor—such as the negative income tax (a cash grant to low-income households, similar to today’s Earned Income Tax Credit) favored by Milton Friedman, or the guaranteed minimum income that Friedrich Hayek assumed would exist."

Today we published our 200th evidence-based article in #labor #economics. Thank you to all of our wonderful authors! You can read all of our articles here: http://wol.iza.org/articles