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Public Keynote: Nathan Wilmers

Nathan Wilmers (MIT Sloan School of Management)

The Decline of Low-Wage Work in America

November 20, 2026
2.30 pm - 4.00 pm

Ceremonial Hall 2, Building LC (Library & Learning Center)
Campus Vienna University of Economics and Business, Welthandelsplatz 1, 1020 Wien

Note that the event will start on time, so we kindly ask you to arrive a few minutes early to ensure a smooth beginning.

Please register at the end of this page as space is limited!

About this lecture

From 2014 to 2025, the share of US hourly workers paid below $15 in real terms fell by two-thirds, from 38% to 10%.  This reversed around 40% of the rise in US labor market inequality since 1980, as pay increases in low-wage retail, food service and logistics jobs outpaced higher-status occupations.  Why did pay rise at the bottom of the labor market? We investigate the role played by work intensification, new technology adoption and ecommerce in driving up productivity and pay in low-wage workplaces.  As labor markets tightened and minimum wages increased, employers of low-wage workers rationalized jobs.

About Nathan Wilmers

Headshot Wilmers

Nathan Wilmers is the Erwin H. Schell Professor of Management and a Professor of Work and Organization Studies at the MIT Sloan School of Management. 

Wilmers researches wage and earnings inequality, economic sociology, and the sociology of labor. His empirical work focuses on how differences between organizations affect outcomes for workers.

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