ECO101H1 Lecture Notes - Lecture 11: Labour Economics, Perfect Competition, Diminishing Returns

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Demand for a factor is a derived demand (from the market for the good it is used to produce) Vmp = price (of good) * marginal product of factor. Firms are perfectly competitive, and the price of widgets is . Labour is the only variable factor of production (so the law of diminishing returns applies) No. of workers (tp) total product (mp) marginal. Observations: mp declines as number of workers increases (and thus, vmp declines as number of workers increases. Firm will not hire a worker unless vmp is at least equal to the wage rate. If wage rate is , firm will not hire the 3rd worker. If wage = 200, firm hires 2 workers. Vmp = demand for labour: assume ssl is upward sloping, shifts in ddl and ssl alter wage (w) and employment (n, equilibrium wage (w) is vmp of last worker hired.

Related Questions

1. The addition to the revenue obtained from firing an additional unit of labour is:

a. marginal revenue product

b. marginal physical product of labour

c.total product

d. marginal factor cost

2. The firm's demand curve for labour is:

a. the demand curve for the good produced divided by the price of the good

b.the marginal revenue product curve for labour

c.the marginal physical product curve for labour divided by the good

d. the marginal physical product curve for labour multiplied by the price of labour

3. If the price of the product is $1.50 and the marginal factor cost of an additional unit of input is $105, how many units of labour should be hired?

Labor input (workers/day)_______________________________-total physical product (output/day)

10 __________________________________________________500

11__________________________________________________600

12__________________________________________________690

13___________________________________________________760

14___________________________________________________800

a. 14

b.12

c.13

d.11

4. the price elasticity of demand for labour equals

a. the change in quantity demanded of labour divided by the change in the price of labour

b. the slope of the demand curve for labour

c. the percentage change in the price of labour divided by the percentage change in the supply of labour

d. the per cent change in the quantity demanded of labour divided by the percentage change in the price of labour

5. We would expect that a rise in labour supply will have a proportionately larger effect on the market wage rate when:

a. the supply for labour is elastic

b.the demand for labour is unitary elastic

c.the demand for labour is elastic

d.the demand for labour is inelastic

orangerhinoceros668

(1)

Which of the following employment situations would most closely approximate a monopsony?

	a steel mill in Yokahama, Japan.
	a fast food restaurant in a big city.
	a farmer hiring seasonal workers.
	a large factory in a small town.

(2)

If a monopsonist hires labor, it will choose to hire that quantity at which ___________ and pay a wage rate that is _______________.

	MR = MC; equal to the MRP curve.
	the supply curve intersect the MRP; less than MFC
	MRP = MFC; less than MRP
	the supply curve intersect the MRP; equal to MRP

(3)

Suppose a firm employs both labor and capital. If the ratio of marginal product to price of labor is 50/$10 and the ratio of marginal product of capital to price of capital is 60/$12, the firm should

	maintain the current combination capital and labor.
	buy more labor and less capital because labor is cheaper.
	buy more capital and less labor because capital is cheaper.
	buy more capital because it is more productive than labor.

(4)

Derived demand for labor means that when a firm hires labor, it has to derive its demand

	mathematically.
	based on the labor supply.
	from the demand for the product that the labor produces.
	based on the minimum wage.

(5)

For a firm in perfect competition, the value of the marginal product is

	the value of an additional unit of output measured in terms of additional cost.
	the total value of the total output output divided by the total output.
	additional revenue minus additional cost as a result of an increase in output.
	the price of the product multiplied by the additional output resulting from an additional unit employed.

(6)

A firm that is perfectly competitive will hire labor as long as which of the following is true?

	VMP < W.
	VMP > W.
	MC > MR.
	VMP < MRP.

(7)

The VMP curve slopes downward at some point because

	congestion in the work place lowers marginal product.
	teamwork in the work place increases marginal product.
	the firm hires less labor as the wage rate rises.
	labor supplies less amounts of labor as the wage rate falls.

(8)

Which of the following would not be considered capital in a business?

	The employees
	The factory
	A machine
	Tools

(9)

The increase in the value of a firmâs capital as it increases in age and use is depreciation.

	true
	false

(10)

On a labor market graph, a firmâs demand for labor is

	the wage rate.
	the marginal revenue product curve.
	the marginal product curve.
	indeterminant.

(11)

Why may a householdâs labor supply curve bend backwards at some wage rate?

	The household substitutes labor for leisure.
	The household substitutes leisure for labor.
	Employers demand fewer employees at higher wage rates.
	Households want to supply more labor as the wage rate decreases to maintain incomes.

(12)

The substitution effect is usually stronger than the income effect, thus creating an upward sloping labor supply curve.

	true
	false

(13)

An inelastic demand for labor means that an increase in the wage rate causes a less than proportionate decrease in the quantity of labor demanded.

	true
	false

(14)

Marginal revenue product is

	marginal revenue divided by marginal product.
	marginal revenue times marginal product.
	marginal product minus marginal revenue.
	marginal product plus marginal revenue.

(15)

A firm obeys the least-cost rule by equating the ratios of ___________________ to the ________________ price.

	marginal product; product
	marginal product; factor
	marginal cost; product
	marginal revenue; product

(16)

Suppose the MP of the last unit of capital hired equals 12 and the MP of the last unit of labor hired equals 16.If the price of capital is $8 per unit and the price of labor is $8 per unit, then the firm

	is maximizing its costs with this combination of factors.
	is maximizing its profits with this combination of factors.
	should hire more labor and less capital in order to minimize its costs.
	should hire more capital and less labor in order to minimize its costs.

(17)

For a firm to minimize its costs with more than one factor of production, for every factor, the ratio of the

	marginal product to factor price must be equal.
	marginal revenue product to factor price must be equal.
	marginal revenue product to output must be equal.
	marginal cost to factor price must be equal.

(18)

A monopsony is a firm that, in a specific market, is the only

	seller of a product.
	buyer of a product.
	seller of a factor of production.
	buyer of a factor of production.

(19)

Which of the following businesses would most closely approximate a monopsonist?

	A steel mill in Pittsburgh
	A fast food franchise in a large city
	A large manufacturer in a rural county
	A rancher who hires ranch help

(20)

A firm has the opportunity to buy a machine that costs $2500. It has found the present value of the income generated by the machine to be $2487. It should purchase the machine.

	true
	false

(21)

An increase in the market rate of interest causes

	a leftward shift in the demand for capital curve.
	a rightward shift in the demand for capital curve.
	a movement up the demand for capital curve.
	a movement down the demand for capital curve.

(22)

The characteristic of capital that makes it different from labor is its

	high cost.
	durability.
	rotunda.
	relatively low cost compared to labor.

(23)

The present value of $1000 one year in the future at a 10 percent interest rate is approximately

	$870.
	$909.
	$1000.
	$1909.

coffeemouse295

1. Marginal resource cost is

A) the increase in total resource cost associated with the production of one more unit of output.

B) the increase in total resource cost associated with the hire of one more unit of the resource.

C) total resource cost divided by the number of inputs employed.

D) the change in total revenue associated with the employment of one more unit of the resource.

2. Which of the following increases in labour demand is due to a change in the price of a related resource?

A) Software sales rise, thus increasing the demand for software developers.

B) Snowboarding increases in popularity, thus increasing the demand for the workers who make snowboards.

C) A decrease in the price of wood decreases the cost of furniture, thus increasing the demand for furniture workers.

D) A technological change increases output per worker in the computer industry, thus increasing the demand for computer workers.

3 The labour demand curve of a firm

A) will shift to the left if the price of the product the labour is producing falls.

B) is perfectly elastic if the firm is selling its product in a purely competitive market.

C) reflects a direct relationship between the number of workers hired and the money wage rate.

D) is the same as its marginal product curve.

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ECO101H1 Lecture Notes - Lecture 11: Labour Economics, Perfect Competition, Diminishing Returns

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