Academic Integrity: tutoring, explanations, and feedback — we don’t complete graded work or submit on a student’s behalf.

Consider the workers at Live Happley Orchards whose production schedule for boxe

ID: 2496428 • Letter: C

Question

Consider the workers at Live Happley Orchards whose production schedule for boxes of apples is given by the following table: Live Happley is a small player in the apple business and has no individual effect on wages and prices. Suppose that the market wage for apple pickers is $200 per day. If the price of apples is $13 per box, Live Happley should hire Suppose that the price of apples rises to $15 per box, but the wage rate remains at $200 per day. Now Live Happley should hire Assuming that all apple-producing firms have a similar production schedule, an increase in the price of apples will cause the apple pickers to. Suppose that wages rise to $250 per day due to an increased demand for workers. Assuming that the price of apples remains at $15 per box, Live Happley will now hire.

Explanation / Answer

Wage rate of apple pickers = $200 per day

Price of apples = $13 per box

Following is the required table –

Labor

(Number of workers)

Output (TP)

(Boxes per day)

MP

(TPn-TPn-1)

MRP

(MP * Price)

0

0

-

-

1

20

20

260

2

38

18

234

3

54

16

208

4

68

14

182

5

80

12

156

A firm hires that amount of labor up to which MRP is either greater than or equal to wage rate. As above table shows that up to hiring of 3 workers, MRP is greater than wage rate.

So, if market wage rate for apple pickers is $200 per day and price of apples is $13 per box, Live Happely should hire 3 workers.

Now,

Price per box of apples increases to $15 per box from $13 per box.

Wage rate of apple pickers = $200 per day

Price of apples = $15 per box

Following is the required table –

Labor

(Number of workers)

Output (TP)

(Boxes per day)

MP

(TPn-TPn-1)

MRP

(MP * Price)

0

0

-

-

1

20

20

300

2

38

18

270          

3

54

16

240

4

68

14

210

5

80

12

180

A firm hires that amount of labor up to which MRP is either greater than or equal to wage rate. As above table shows that up to hiring of 4 workers, MRP is greater than wage rate.

So, if market wage rate for apple pickers is $200 per day and price of apples is $15 per box, Live Happely should hire 4 workers.

Assuming that all apple-producing firms have similar production schedule, an increase in the price of apples will cause the number of apple pickers to increase.

Now,

Wage rate of apple pickers rises from $200 per day to $250 per day.

Wage rate of apple pickers = $250 per day

Price of apples = $15 per box

Following is the required table –

Labor

(Number of workers)

Output (TP)

(Boxes per day)

MP

(TPn-TPn-1)

MRP

(MP * Price)

0

0

-

-

1

20

20

300

2

38

18

270          

3

54

16

240

4

68

14

210

5

80

12

180

A firm hires that amount of labor up to which MRP is either greater than or equal to wage rate. As above table shows that up to hiring of 2 workers, MRP is greater than wage rate.

So, if market wage rate for apple pickers is $250 per day and price of apples is $15 per box, Live Happely should hire 2 workers.

Labor

(Number of workers)

Output (TP)

(Boxes per day)

MP

(TPn-TPn-1)

MRP

(MP * Price)

0

0

-

-

1

20

20

260

2

38

18

234

3

54

16

208

4

68

14

182

5

80

12

156