Assignment:
1. (Resource Demand) How do firms and individuals determine if it's worth it to (a) invest in capital improvements, (b) hire additional workers, or (c) decide where to work? Briefly explain.
2. (Shifts of Resource Demand) A local pizzeria hires college students to make pizza, wait on tables, take phone orders, and deliver pizzas. For each situation described, determine whether the demand for student employees by the restaurant would increase, decrease, or remain unchanged. Briefly explain each answer.
a. The demand for pizza increases.
b. Another pizzeria opens up next door.
c. An increase in the minimum wage raises the cost of hiring student employees.
d. The restaurant buys a computer system for taking phone orders.
3. (Selling Output as a Price Taker) If a competitive firm hires another full-time worker, total output increases from 100 units to 110 units per week. Suppose the market price of output is $25 per unit. What is the maximum weekly wage at which the firm would hire that additional worker?
5. In the news...Please click on the following and answer the question below
Question:
Much has been written about the impact of rising jet fuel prices on the operation of airlines. What impact do you think this would have on the demand for labor by American Airlines?
6. (Substitution and Income Effects) Suppose that the cost of living increases, thereby reducing the purchasing power of your income. If your money wage doesn't increase, you may work more hours because of this cost-of-living increase. Is this response predominantly an income effect or a substitution effect? Briefly explain.
7. (Nonwage Determinants of Labor Supply) Suppose that two jobs are exactly the same except that one is performed in an air-conditioned workplace. How could you measure the value workers attach to such a job amenity?
8. (Craft Unions) Both industrial unions and craft unions attempt to raise their members' wages, but each goes about it differently. Explain the difference in approaches and describe the impact these differences have on excess quantity of labor supplied.
9. Why do you think the role of the unions in the US has declined over the years? Briefly discuss.
10. What is the difference between mediation and binding arbitration? What is the role of a strike in the bargaining process? Briefly discuss.