LABOR MARKET, MINIMUM WAGE, AND INCOME DISTRIBUTION IN BRAZIL IN THE RECENT PAST

ABSTRACT This study examines Brazil's labor market and labor income distribution from 2012 to 2019 when the country faced economic deceleration and crisis. During the period, the labor market experienced significant transformations such as increased unemployment and informality, especially in 2015 and 2016. However, income inequality indicators showed a somewhat distinct trend with continued deconcentration until 2016. Using data from the IBGE/PNAD databases, the econometric analysis examined the effects of economic indicators and the minimum wage on labor income. The results confirm that the minimum wage had a significant impact on low/average levels of labor income, corroborating and qualifying other studies that highlighted the role of the minimum wage in improving the country's income distribution in previous periods. It was also observed that the minimum wage had little influence on the earnings of the first two-tenths of the distribution. Its most significant effect was observed between the third and seventh tenths of the income distribution. For the top tenths, economy indicators had more considerable weight in determining income.