Vol. 21 No. 44 (2026)

Artículos

The professional minimum wage in the Mexican labor market

Published 2026-06-12

  • Josue Salgado-Jurado
    • ,
  • Sheila Yazmín Solís Vázquez
    • ,
  • José Leonel López Robles

Josue Salgado-Jurado
Autonomous University of Coahuila image/svg+xml

Sheila Yazmín Solís Vázquez
Autonomous University of Coahuila image/svg+xml

José Leonel López Robles
Autonomous University of Coahuila image/svg+xml

Abstract

This article studies the effects of the minimum wage by occupation in the Mexican labor market from 2005-2024. First, the National Occupation and Employment Survey (ENOE) is used to obtain the average and median, general and professional minimum wage, among other variables related to human capital, such as age and schooling. Subsequently, a data panel is built with 29 occupations approved between the National Occupational Classification System and the Mexican Occupational Classification and the most outstanding variables that allow the identification of changes between labor supply and demand. It is found that when the bindingness of the wage is stronger, the market tends to be more flexible, but sometimes, at the cost of the worker's loss of bargaining power.

PDF (Spanish)

References

  1. Acemoglu, D. y Pischke, J. S. (2003). Minimum wages and on-the-job training. In Worker Well-Being and public policy (Vol. 22, pp. 159-202). Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
  2. Acemoglu, D. y Restrepo, P. (2020). Robots and jobs: Evidence from US labor markets. Journal of political economy, 128(6), 2188-2244.
  3. Acemoglu, D., Johnson, S., y Viswanath, K. (2023). Why the power of technology rarely goes to the people. MIT Sloan Management Review, 64(4), 1-4.
  4. Ahlfeldt, G. M., Roth, D., y Seidel, T. (2022). Optimal minimum wages.
  5. Altonji, J., Páez, D. G., Hynsjö, D. M., y Vidangos, I. (2024). Earnings, Marriage, and the Variance of Family Income by Age, Gender, and Cohort (No. w33122). National Bureau of Economic Research.
  6. Andrieux, E., y Kuczeray, M. (2023). Minimum Wage and Skills-Evidence from Job Vacancy Data (No. 034).
  7. Azar, J. A., Berry, S. T. y Marinescu, I. (2022). Estimating labor market power (No. w30365). National Bureau of Economic Research.
  8. Bell, L. A. (1997). The impact of minimum wages in Mexico and Colombia. Journal of labor Economics, 15(S3), S102-S135.
  9. Bhattacharjea, A. (2021). Labour market flexibility in Indian manufacturing: A critical survey of the literature. International Labour Review, 160(2), 197-217.
  10. Bleynat, I., Challú, A. E. y Segal, P. (2021). Inequality, living standards, and growth: two centuries of economic development in Mexico. The Economic History Review, 74(3), 584– 610. https://doi.org/10.1111/ehr.13027
  11. Blustein, D. L., Lysova, E. I., y Duffy, R. D. (2023). Understanding decent work and meaningful work. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior , 10 , 289–314.
  12. Boeri, T. (2012). Setting the minimum wage. Labour Economics, 19(3), 281–290. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.labeco.2012.01.001
  13. Bomba, K. (2022). Minimum wage as an instrument to provide dignity at work. E-Journal of
  14. Bosch, M., y Manacorda, M. (2010). Minimum wages and earnings inequality in urban mexico. American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 2(4), 128–49.
  15. Bradley, D. H. (2016). State Minimum Wages: An Overview.
  16. Budrys, Ž., Porqueddu, M., y Sokol, A. (2021). Striking a bargain: Narrative identification of wage bargaining shocks.
  17. Campos, R. M., Esquivel, G., y Santillán, A. S. (2017). El impacto del salario mínimo en los ingresos y el empleo en México. Revista CEPAL.
  18. Campos-Vazquez, R. M., y Esquivel, G. (2020). The effect of doubling the minimum wage anddecreasing taxes on inflation in mexico. Economics Letters, 189 , 109051
  19. Campos-Vazquez, R. M., y Esquivel, G. (2023). The Effect of the Minimum Wage on Poverty: Evidence from a Quasi-Experiment in Mexico. The Journal of Development Studies, 59(3), 360-380.
  20. Campos-Vázquez, R. M., y Lustig, N. (2017). Labour income inequality in Mexico. Working Papers, UNU-WIDER.
  21. Card, D. (2022). Who set your wage? American Economic Review, 112(4), 1075–90.
  22. Card, D., y Cardoso, A. R. (2022). Wage flexibility under sectoral bargaining. Journal of the European Economic Association, 20(5), 2013-2061.
  23. Card, D., y Krueger, A. B. (1996). Labor market effects of school quality: Theory and evidence.
  24. Card, D., y Krueger, A. B. (2016). Myth and measurement: The new economics of the minimum wage. Princeton University Press.
  25. Card, D., Lemieux, T., y Riddell, W. C. (2023). Unions and Wage Inequality. In Global Labour in Distress, Volume II: Earnings,(In) decent Work and Institutions (pp. 61-113). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
  26. Card, D., Rothstein, J., y Yi, M. (2023). Industry wage differentials: A firm-based approach (No. w31588). National Bureau of Economic Research.
  27. Cengiz, D., Dube, A., Lindner, A., y Zipperer, B. (2019). The effect of minimum wages on low-wage jobs. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 134 (3), 1405–1454.
  28. Chen, Y. R., Teulings, C. N., et al. (2022). What is the optimal minimum wage? Centre for
  29. Chen, Y. R., Teulings, C. N., et al. (2022). What is the optimal minimum wage? (Tech. Rep.). CEPR Discussion Papers.
  30. Clar, M., Dreger, C., y Ramos, R. (2007). Wage Flexibility and Labour Market Institutions: A Meta‐Analysis. Kyklos, 60(2), 145-163.
  31. Clemens, J. P., y Strain, M. R. (2023). Why Do Labor Unions Advocate for Minimum Wage Increases?.
  32. Clemens, J., y Strain, M. R. (2022). How important are minimum wage increases in increasing the wages of minimum wage workers? (Tech. Rep.). National Bureau of Economic Research.
  33. Clemens, J., Kahn, L. B. y Meer, J. (2021). Dropouts need not apply? the minimum wage and skill upgrading. Journal of Labor Economics, 39(S1), S107-S149.
  34. Cortez, W. W. (2001). What is behind increasing wage inequality in Mexico?. World Development, 29(11), 1905-1922.
  35. de la Federación, D. O. (1988). Salarios mínimos Generales y Profesionales que estarán vigentes a partir de 1º de marzo de 1988.
  36. del Trabajo, M. L. F., y Carbonell, M. (2019). Ley Federal del Trabajo. Tirant lo Blanch.
  37. Delajara, M., Montiel, R. E., Fonseca, C. E., Anker, M., y Anker, R. (2021). The Living Wage in the Municipalities of Ensenada and San Quintín, Baja California, México (No. 2021_07).
  38. Demir, G. (2022). Labor market frictions and spillover effects from publicly announced sectoral minimum wages. Ruhr Economic Papers.
  39. Derenoncourt et al. (2021). Spillover effects from voluntary employer minimum wages (No. w29425). National Bureau of Economic Research.
  40. Doh, T. y Van der Meer, L. (2023). The Employment Effect of an Increase in the National Minimum Wage: Review of International Evidence. Economic Review, 108(2), 1-15.
  41. Dube, A., Lester, T. W., y Reich, M. (2016). Minimum wage shocks, employment flows, and labor market frictions. Journal of Labor Economics, 34(3), 663-704.
  42. Dustmann, C., Lindner, A., Schönberg, U., Umkehrer, M., y Vom Berge, P. (2022). Reallocation effects of the minimum wage. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 137(1), 267-328.
  43. Edwards, S., y Lustig, N. C. (Eds.). (2001). Labor markets in Latin America: Combining social protection with market flexibility. Brookings Institution Press.
  44. Eide, A. (2000). Economic and social rights. na.
  45. Even, W. E., y Macpherson, D. A. (2003). The wage and employment dynamics of minimum wage workers. Southern Economic Journal , 69 (3), 676–690.
  46. Feliciano, Z. M. (1998). Does the minimum wage affect employment in Mexico? Eastern Economic Journal, 24 (2), 165–180.
  47. Fischer‐Daly, M. M. (2022). Dignity and bargaining power: Insights from struggles in strawberries. Industrial Relations Journal, 53(3), 241-260.
  48. Friedrich, M. (2020). Using occupations to evaluate the employment effects of the German minimum wage. Jahrbücher für Nationalökonomie und Statistik, 240(2-3), 269-294
  49. Gandhi, A., y Ruffini, K. (2022). Minimum wages and employment composition. Working Paper.
  50. Gindling, T. H., y Ronconi, L. (2023). Minimum wage policy and inequality in Latin America and the Caribbean.
  51. Giupponi, et al. (2022). The Employment and Distributional Impacts of Nationwide Minimum Wage Changes. Mimeo.
  52. Godoey, A., y Reich, M. (2021). Are minimum wage effects greater in low-wage areas? Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, 60 (1), 36–83. International and Comparative Labour Studies
  53. Gregory, T. y Zierahn, U. (2020). When the minimum wage really bites hard: Impact on top earners and skill supply. ZEW-Centre for European Economic Research Discussion Paper (20-042).
  54. Grossman, J. B. (1983). The impact of the minimum wage on other wages. Journal of Human Resources, 359-378.
  55. Hamermesh, D. S. (2021). Do labor costs affect companies’ demand for labor? IZA World of
  56. Jardim, E. et al. (2022). Minimum-wage increases and low-wage employment: Evidence from Seattle. American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, 14(2), 263–314.
  57. Johnson, S., y Acemoglu, D. (2023). Power and Progress: Our Thousand-Year Struggle Over Technology and Prosperity. Hachette UK.
  58. Kahn, L. M. (2015). Wage compression and the gender pay gap. IZA World of Labor.
  59. Kaplan, D. S. y Novaro, F. P. A. (2006). El efecto de los salarios mínimos en los ingresos laborales de México. El Trimestre Económico, 139–173.
  60. Kaufman, B. E. (2010). Institutional economics and the minimum wage: broadening the theoretical and policy debate. ILR Review, 63(3), 427-453.
  61. Kiese, C. D. R. (2022). El salario mínimo para el servicio doméstico desde la perspectiva de la mujer como sujeto de derechos humanos. Ciencia Latina Revista Científica Multidisciplinar, 6(6), 10506-10524.
  62. Kristensen, N., y Cunningham, W. L. (2006). Do Minimum Wages in Latin America and the Caribbean Matter?: Evidence from 19 Countries (Vol. 3870). World Bank Publications.
  63. Krueger, A. B. (2018). Luncheon Address: Reflections on Dwindling Workers Bargaining Power and Monetary Policy. In Conference on ‘Changing Markets Structures and Implication for Monetary Policy, Federal Reserve Bank pf Kansas City, August (Vol. 24).
  64. Lordan, G. y Neumark, D. (2018). People versus machines: The impact of minimum wages on automatable jobs. Labour Economics, 52, 40-53.
  65. Lordan, G., y Neumark, D. (2018). People versus machines: The impact of minimum wages on automatable jobs. Labour Economics, 52, 40-53.
  66. Malloy, L. C. (2020, January). The minimum wage, bargaining power, and the top income share. In Forum for Social Economics (Vol. 49, No. 1, pp. 75-98). Routledge.
  67. Maloney, W. F., y Ribeiro, E. P. (1999). Efficiency wage and union effects in labor demand and wage structure in Mexico: An application of quantile analysis (Vol. 2131). World Bank, Latin America and the Caribbean Region, Poverty Reduction and Economic Management Sector Unit.
  68. Manning, A. (2003). The real thin theory: monopsony in modern labour markets. Labour economics, 10(2), 105-131.
  69. Medrano-Adán, L., y Salas-Fumás, V. (2023). Do minimum wages deliver what they promise? Effects of minimum wage on employment, output, and income inequality from occupational choice theory. Economic Analysis and Policy, 80, 366-383.
  70. Mengano, P. (2022). Trends in Worker Bargaining Power. Available at SSRN 4466868.
  71. Mincer, J. y Leighton, L. S. (1980). Effect of minimum wages on human capital formation.
  72. Moreno-Brid, J. C., Garry, S. y Monroy-Gómez-Franco, L. A. (2014). El salario mínimo en México. Economía unam, 11(33), 78-93.
  73. Moreno-Brid, J. C., Garry, S. y Monroy-Gómez-Franco, L. A. (2014). El salario mínimo en México. Economía unam, 11(33), 78-93.
  74. Müller, T. (2023). Minimum Wage Developments in 2022: Fighting the Cost-Of-Living Crisis. ETUI Research Paper-Policy Brief, 2.
  75. Neumark, D. y Wascher, W. (1994). Employment effects of minimum and subminimum wages: Reply to Card, Katz, and Krueger. ILR Review, 47(3), 497-512.
  76. Neumark, D., y Shirley, P. (2022). Myth or measurement: What does the new minimum wage research say about minimum wages and job loss in the United States?. Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, 61(4), 384-417.
  77. Pérez Pérez, J., y Nuño-Ledesma, J. G. (2024). Workers, workplaces, sorting, and wage dispersion in Mexico (No. 2024-06). Working Papers.
  78. Puggioni, D., Calderón, M., Cebreros, A., Fernández Bujanda, L., Inguanzo, J. A., y Jaume, D. (2022). Inequality, income dynamics, and transitions of Mexican workers (No. 2022-14). Working Papers.
  79. Rosen, S. (1986). The theory of equalizing differences. Handbook of labor economics, 1, 641-692.
  80. Sauermann, J. (2023). Performance measures and worker productivity. IZA World of Labor.
  81. Schaitberger, T. (2023). Minimum or Living Wage? Framing Effects on Wage Floor Preferences and Expectations. Framing Effects on Wage Floor Preferences and Expectations.
  82. Simon, A. y Wilson, M. (2021). Optimal minimum wage setting in a federal system. Journal of Urban Economics, 123, 103336.
  83. Wong, S. A. (2019). Minimum wage impacts on wages and hours worked of low-income workers in Ecuador. World Development, 116, 77-99.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.