The Politics of the Minimum Wage in the Global South
Presented by:
Teri L. Caraway
Benjamin E. Lippincott Professor of Political Economy
Department of Political Science
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Benjamin E. Lippincott Professor of Political Economy
Department of Political Science
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
as part of the15th Research Dissemination Forum of the
UP School of Labor and Industrial Relations
Center for Labor Justice
16 February 2026 2:00 – 5:00 PM
UP SOLAIR Mini Auditorium
Abstract: Minimum wages increased dramatically in all regions of the Global South during the first two decades of the 21 st century. We highlight the role of minimum wage setting institutions in creating political logics that help to explain why workers have made huge gains on this issue. Unlike many issues of concern to workers, the executive branch has the final authority to raise minimum wages in most of the Global South. Because executives can raise minimum wages without taking legislative action, they can manipulate them on relatively short notice in response to political circumstances. We highlight two political pressures—elections and labor mobilization—that lead governments in democracies and competitive autocracies to raise minimum wages. Using two original cross-national data sets on minimum wages and labor mobilization, we test these arguments quantitatively and find strong evidence that elections and labor mobilization are associated with large minimum wage increases. We also present four brief case studies of Cambodia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Turkey, that illustrate the theorized dynamics qualitatively.
Teri L. Caraway is Benjamin E. Lippincott Professor of Political Economy in the Department of Political Science at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. Her
research specialization is the comparative political economy of labor with a focus on the Global South and Southeast Asia. Her most recent books are Organized Labor in Southeast Asia (Cambridge University Press, 2023) and Labor and Politics in Indonesia (Cambridge University Press, 2020). Professor Caraway’s current research examines the politics of the minimum wage globally, the impact of democratic backsliding on labor movements in Southeast Asia, and the political economy of critical minerals in the Global South, with a focus on the nickel industry in Indonesia
research specialization is the comparative political economy of labor with a focus on the Global South and Southeast Asia. Her most recent books are Organized Labor in Southeast Asia (Cambridge University Press, 2023) and Labor and Politics in Indonesia (Cambridge University Press, 2020). Professor Caraway’s current research examines the politics of the minimum wage globally, the impact of democratic backsliding on labor movements in Southeast Asia, and the political economy of critical minerals in the Global South, with a focus on the nickel industry in Indonesia