Exam 19: Earnings and Discrimination

A study of segregated streetcars in the southern United States in the early twentieth century found which of the following? (i) Before the passage of laws that mandated segregation of races on streetcars,segregation of smokers and nonsmokers was more common than segregation of races. (ii) The firms that ran the streetcars were unanimous in their support of laws that required segregation of races. (iii) firms that ran the streetcars were more interested in profits than in segregating customers by race.

Why is a plumber never likely to be as rich as a movie star?

Scenario 19-3 In the small town of Hamilton, Montana, there is a local hardware store called Eddy's Hardware. There are only two types of workers who apply for jobs at Eddy's Hardware: cowboys and farm boys. Local politicians have received numerous complaints that Eddy's Hardware is practicing wage discrimination against cowboys. Eddy's Hardware denies the complaint and says the store is only trying to maximize profit. -Refer to Scenario 19-3.Which of the following statements would strengthen the discrimination complaint against Eddy's Hardware? (i) farm boys call in sick to work more often than cowboys. (ii) Farm boys' experience with hardware generally exceeds cowboys' experience with hardware. (iii) Many cowboys take six months per year off from work to compete in a rodeo circuit and therefore have less on-the-job experience with a hardware store.

When an employer pays the cost of educating a worker,it is likely that the employer

Professional underwater divers are known to have high wages and work an average of only 20 hours per week.The high wages are partially explained by the fact that the job is likely

Evidence of discrimination is most apparent when one compares wages among broad groups.

A prestigious private high school requires each of its teachers to have a Ph.D.in the subject they teach.This requirement is likely to

One explanation for the loss in manufacturing jobs is that new technologies have replaced the need for some workers.

In recent years,the amount of international trade in which the United States engages has increased.Which of the following accurately describes the effect(s)on labor demanded by firms in the United States?

A computer is an example of productivity-enhancing human capital.

When the supply of workers is plentiful,one would predict that market wages would be

Business owners who care only about making money are

Certain factors that are probably important in determining wages are nevertheless difficult to measure.Consequently,labor economists find those factors difficult to incorporate into their studies of labor markets and wages.Those factors include

Joe is a white 23-year-old male,and Mike is a black 23-year-old male.Both Joe and Mike are economics majors,and they graduated from the same college in the same year with the same GPA.Joe and Mike both got jobs at a brokerage firm after graduating from college.They both work equally hard.Joe earns $38,000 a year,and Mike earns $30,000 a year.Select the best explanation for this wage difference.

In the early 20th century,streetcar seating which was segregated by race

Based on the widening income gap between "personal-service" workers and "symbolic analysts,"

Suppose that consumers suddenly prefer to do business with left-handed workers instead of right-handed workers.We would expect that the marginal revenue product of

If we were to observe above-equilibrium wages in a particular labor market,then a possible explanation might be that

Assuming that all other things are equal,including the wage,which of the following statements is correct?

One of the problems with calculating the true amount of discrimination that takes place in the market for labor is