Some proponents of higher minimum wages cite reduced absenteeism as a positive side-effect. However, little evidence on the relationship between minimum wages and absenteeism exists for the United States. This paper examines the effect of minimum wages on absenteeism using data from the Merged...

Absenteeism is a nonwage component of compensation valued by workers and costly for employers to provide. Higher minimum wages may cause employers to try to reduce worker absenteeism to reduce costs, but, from a labor supply perspective, higher minimum wages exert a substitution effect against...