Research On The Impact Of Minimum Wage On Gender Wage Gap Of The Migrant Workers In China

Following the transformation from a planned economy to a market economy since the reform and opening up,the levels of wage are gradually regulated by the labor market.The discrepancy in endowment by gender directly contributes to the widening income gap,with the gender wage disparity becoming increasingly serious.In 2011,the China Women’s Development Program(2011-2020)promulgated by the State Council put forward the main objective of "eliminating gender discrimination in employment,minimizing the gender wage gap".Migrant workers constitute a significant component of China’s labor market,yet there is also a gender wage gap internally.Female migrant workers,being both peasants and women,are in a disadvantaged position with respect to industry choice,job stability and income,while the phenomenon of unequal pay for equal work is particularly prominent among them.This will hinder the objective attainment of "Pareto efficiency" in the labor market and lead to the wasting of social resources allocation.As a bottom-up social policy,the minimum wage serve as an effective means for the government to safeguard the rights and interests of low-income communities.Being a major part of the low-income population in China,migrant workers’ wage level will be directly subject to the fluctuation of China’s minimum wage standard.Consequently,research on the impact of the minimum wage standard on the gender wage gap of migrant workers can not only contribute to the exploration of targeted measures to address the gender wage gap of migrant workers,facilitate gender equality and enhance market efficiency,but also optimize the evaluation and design of the minimum wage system in China.In light of the above,grounded on previous studies,this paper sorts out the relevant theories concerning gender wage gap and minimum wage.Furthermore,incorporating the practical circumstances of migrant workers in China,the influential mechanism of the minimum wage standard on the gender wage gap of migrant workers is examined.Subsequently,an empirical study is conducted to investigate the effect of minimum wage standard on the gender wage gap of migrant workers by employing data from China Migrants Dynamic Survey(CMDS).The sample selectivity bias problem is rectified through the Heckman two-step method.Afterwards,a heterogeneity analysis is performed from three perspectives of region,education,and industry,from which the influential mechanism of minimum wage standard on gender wage gap of migrant workers is explored through the tests of labor force price effect and human capital effect.Eventually,the robustness test of the empirical results is conducted with stepwise substitution of explanatory and explained variables.In line with the empirical study findings,this paper concludes that:(1)On a whole,the raise of minimum wage standard can significantly narrow the gender wage gap of migrant workers,of which the results have passed the robustness test of substitution variables,demonstrating the reliability of the findings.(2)There is a variation in the impact of the minimum wage on different groups.Across regions,increasing the minimum wage can significantly diminish the gender wage gap of migrant workers in central and western regions,but not significantly in eastern regions.Regarding different industries,the impact extent of the minimum wage on the gender wage gap is dependent on the industry characteristics.With regard to different education levels,there is the greatest effect of the minimum wage in narrowing the gender wage gap for low-educated population.(3)As can be observed in the results of the mechanism test,the minimum wage can serve to minimize the gender wage gap of migrant workers through two pathways: increasing the labor force price and the human capital level.In conclusion,pursuant to the findings of the above analysis,the corresponding countermeasures are proposed.It is of great significance for China’s current minimum wage to diminish the gender wage gap,which should be continued and enforced.Efforts should be made to set minimum wage accordingly by region,industry and education level.Both the government and enterprises should grant migrant workers more training and learning opportunities,with a view to improving human capital level.