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Principles of Economics by Fred M Gottheil

Principles of Economics by Fred M Gottheil. PowerPoint Slides prepared by Ken Long. © 1999 South-Western College Publishing. Chapter 15. Wage Rates in Competitive Labor Markets. 6/10/2014. © 1999 South-Western College Publishing.

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Principles of Economics by Fred M Gottheil

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  1. Principles of Economicsby Fred M Gottheil PowerPoint Slides prepared by Ken Long ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  2. Chapter 15 • Wage Rates in Competitive Labor Markets 6/10/2014 ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  3. Turn from the product market to the factor (input or resource) market • Roles of supply and demand are reversed: firms demand the factors, people supply them, as in the labor market • Factor demand is a derived demand, that is, derived from the demand for the product being produced.

  4. As in product market, different kinds of factor markets • Begin with a perfectly competitive factor market, price of the factor is determined by supply and demand for the factor • What is the profit maximizing quantity of a factor that a firm should use?

  5. Here, we assume a competitive labor market • Many buyers and sellers of labor • Homogenous labor • Perfect information and mobility

  6. You already know a lot about the labor market • Use marginal analysis, hire labor to the point where the added cost equals the added revenue

  7. What is Marginal Physical Product? • MPP is the change in output that results from adding one more unit of resource, such as labor, to production ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  8. Q L MPP = 8 ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  9. What is Marginal Revenue Product? • MRP is the change in total revenue that results from adding one more unit of a resource, such as labor, to production ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  10. MRP = MPP x P 10 ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  11. TR L MRP = 11 ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  12. Calculation of MRP

  13. Why is the MRP Curve downward sloping? • Due to the law of diminishing returns ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  14. What is the Demand Curve for Labor? • Same as the Laborer’s MRP curve ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  15. W1 MRP (Demand curve) W2 Q2 Q1 15

  16. What isMarginal Labor Cost? • MLC is the change in a firm’s total cost that results from adding one more worker to production ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  17. TLC L MLC = 17 ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  18. What is MLC equal to in a perfectly competitive labor market? • The same as the market wage rate, that is, • MLC = W (wage)

  19. MLC = W1 W1 MRP Q1 19

  20. How many people are hired to maximize profit? • Up to and including the point where MRP = W Why? ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  21. As long as MRP is greater than the wage rate, another worker will be hired because it is profitable to do so ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  22. Why is profit made from hiring the last worker if MRP > W? • Because that last worker adds more to total revenue than what that last worker is paid ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  23. At what point will the last worker not be hired? • That last worker will not be hired where MRP < W ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  24. Why will the last worker not be hired whereMRP < W? • Because the last worker would cost more than what that last worker could add to total revenue ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  25. Return to the table showing MRP calculation • How many workers should this firm hire if the wage equals $20?

  26. Calculation of MRP

  27. Answer: 4 workers, where MRP = W = $20

  28. Shifts in the MRP curve, the firms demand curve for labor, can be caused by: • Changes in the product price • Changes in productivity of labor

  29. Shift in Demand Curve W D2=MRP2 D1=MRP1 Q ©1999 South-Western College Publishing 29

  30. What is a Supply Curve for labor? • A curve that shows how many units of labor will be supplied at various wages ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  31. Wage S W2 W1 Q2 Q1 Labor

  32. Why is the Supply Curve for Labor generally upward sloping? • Because as the wage rate increases, more workers in the labor market will accept a job ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  33. Difference between Market supply of labor and one individual’s labor supply • An individual’s labor supply curve might not always slope upward • Depends on the substitution and income effects of a wage change

  34. Labor-Leisure trade off • Think of leisure as a product, we “buy” it by giving up labor, thus the price of leisure = wage given up • Thus higher wages raise the price of leisure, 2 possible effects to this

  35. Substitution effect: higher wages raise the price of leisure, thus buy less leisure, work more • Income effect: higher wages raise income, thus demand more leisure ( a normal good), therefore work less • Shape of the Supply curve depends on strength of these 2, possible backward bending labor supply curve

  36. ABOVE W1, INCOME EFFECT OUTWEIGHS SUBSTITUTION EFFECT, WORK LESS DUE TO HIGHER WAGE Wage W1 UP TO W1, SUBSTITUTION EFFECT OUTWEIGHS INCOME EFFECT, WORK MORE DUE TO HIGHER WAGE Labor L1

  37. What can cause a shift in the Supply Curve for Labor? • Other opportunities • Non-monetary aspects of a job • Changes in size of the market ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  38. Shift in Supply W S1 S2 Q 38

  39. WAGES IN A FREE MARKET S W1 Surplus W3 D Shortage W2 Q3 39

  40. Wage rate differentials • Suppose wages for the same type of labor are higher in the north than the south, what tends to happen in the long run?

  41. Labor tends to migrate north, decreasing labor supply in the south and increasing it in the north • Firms tend to migrate south, increasing labor demand in the south, decreasing it in the north • Net effect is to reduce the wage differential

  42. Check out the Bureau of the Census at: • http://www.bls.census.gov/cps/cpsmain.htm ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  43. What happens when the government imposes a minimum wage? • The number of workers demanded is less than the number of workers supplied for low wage jobs ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  44. The Minimum Wage W S Unemployment D 44

  45. The Minimum Wage W S wM D1 D2 45

  46. Note that the magnitude of the effect of the minimum wage depends on the elasticity of demand and supply of labor

  47. For more information on the Minimum Wage: • http://www.dol.gov/dol/esa/public/minwage/main.htm ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  48. What is the Efficiency Wage Theory? • A firm may pay a wage higher than the market’s equilibrium wage in hopes of minimizing turnover and increasing productivity ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

  49. Elasticity of Demand for Labor ( or other factors of production)--depends on what? • Elasticity of product demand, more elastic the demand for the product, the more elastic the demand for factors • Importance in total cost, greater share of total cost a factor is, more elastic the demand • Ease of substitution--easier to substitute for a factor, more elastic its demand it • Time period, more elastic demand the longer the time period

  50. http://www.acinet.org http://www.AJB.dni.us http://www.detnews.com http://www.state.mi.us/mjc/ceo/ http://www.homefair.com/homefair/cmr/salcalc.html 50 ©1999 South-Western College Publishing

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