True or False: The plague was one factor that increased wages in some places due to labor shortages.

The story behind the answer

The Black Death (1347–1351) killed an estimated 30–50% of Europe’s population, creating a severe labor shortage. With fewer workers available to harvest fields, build, and craft goods, surviving laborers gained bargaining power and could demand higher pay or better terms. Landlords and towns often had to compete for hands, pushing wages up and improving conditions for many commoners.

Authorities tried to resist these changes. In England, the Statute of Labourers (1351) attempted to cap wages and restrict workers from moving to better-paying jobs, but enforcement was uneven. The turmoil contributed to social tensions, including the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381, and accelerated the decline of serfdom in parts of Western Europe as labor services shifted to cash rents.