In the 1980s, a shortage of registered nurses in the United States led to an increase of almost 21 percent in the real average hourly earnings of RNs from 1981 to 1989 (Pope and Menke, 1990). This increase was the highest of any occupational group. Use supply and demand theory to show the shortage and explain why a dramatic rise in the wage rate occurred. Was there still a shortage of registered nurses by 1994