The impact of a minimum wage increase on temporary contract workers

We study the impact of the 2016 increase in the Irish minimum wage on the hours worked and the probability of job loss of minimum wage workers. We pay particular attention to temporary contract workers, which may be more susceptible to changes to their working conditions compared to permanent employees. The results indicate that the increase in the minimum wage had a negative and statistically significant effect on the hours worked of minimum wage workers, with an average reduction of approximately 0.6 hours per week. For temporary workers, the effect was greater, with a decline of approximately three hours per week. We find no evidence that the increase in the minimum wage led to an increased probability of becoming jobless in the six‐month period following the rate change, nor did it affect employment rates in sectors employing large numbers of minimum wage workers.