Minimum wage increase ‘had no real impact on household incomes’

Raising the minimum wage closed the hourly pay gap between high and low earners, but had no strong impact on household incomes, according to a new report. One of the report’s authors said the finding is consistent with previous studies which show that lower paid workers are not typically the main breadwinners in a household.

The study from the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), funded by the Low Pay Commission, found that while the minimum wage increased by around 6% in January 2016, it reduced hourly wage inequality between high and low earners by up to 8%.