关于最低工资法的经济学反思

Reflections on the Economics of Minimum Wage Laws

制定最低工资制度以保护低收入群体已成为世界各国的普遍做法。国内外经济学界对此从理论和实证两个方面都进行了一些研究,但至今尚未取得一致的看法,存在很大的分歧。而当我们跳出现有的分析框架,从理论适用的外部环境的视角分析,就会发现任何一项社会政策都有正负效应,最低工资法作为价格管制方式之一的正效应和负效应同时存在。适时推出和调整使其正效应大于负效应,会产生较好的经济和社会效果。反之,得不偿失。以消除贫困和保护弱势群体为宗旨的最低工资法,需要更加完善有效的社会福利及社会保障制度作为支撑体系。因此,政府要同时关注效率和公平两大目标,要保证在经济发展过程中不能使社会成员中境况最差者的情况更加恶化,这样才能达到共同富裕的目的。

Using minimum wage laws to protect low-income groups in the population is common practice among different countries. Domestic and international scholars have studied the rationale and effectiveness of such laws from perspectives of both theory and practice, with varying results and opinions. No consensus has been reached so far. If we get out of the restrictions of our analytical frameworks and look from the perspective of the targeted external environment, we soon realize that all policy measures produce positive and negative effects. As a price-control measure, minimum wage law is no exception. Its timely promulgation and adjustment can make the positive effects to be larger than the negative ones, producing therewith good economic and social effects. Untimely promulgation and adjustments produce adverse and opposite effects. Minimum wage law, with a mission to reduce poverty and protect the weak, requires the support of a strong social welfare and security system. Therefore, government should approach it with an eye to both efficiency and justice so that the livelihood of the poor will not worsen in the wake of implementing such laws and the prosperity of all social members remains viable.