Chapter Nine Markets for Labor Labor in the

Chapter Nine: Markets for Labor

Labor in the Traditional Neoclassical Model

Figure 9. 1: Upward-Sloping Labor Supply Curve

Figure 9. 2: Backward-Bending Individual Labor Supply Curve

Figure 9. 3: Median Weekly Earnings of U. S. Workers, by Educational Attainment, 2012 Source: U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Employment Projections, ” www. bls. gov/emp/ep_chart_001. htm, May 22, 2013

Labor Supply and Demand at the Market Level

Figure 9. 4: The Market for Website Designers

Changes in Jobs and in the Labor Market

Figure 9. 5: Average Annual Hours Worked, Select OECD Countries, 2012 Source: OECD Employment Outlook 2013, Statistical Annex, Table K.

Alternative Explanations for Variations in Wages

Figure 9. 6: Union Membership in the U. S. , 1940 -2012 Source: U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Union Membership Data from the National Directory Series and Union Affiliation Data from the Current Population Survey.

Figure 9. 7: Median Weekly Earnings, Select Groups of U. S. Workers Age 25 -54, 2013 Source: U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers, ” Economic News Release, July 18, 2013.

Wages and Economic Power

Figure 9. 8: Real Median Weekly Wages Versus Real Corporate Profits, United States, 1980 -2012 Sources: U. S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, National Income and Product Accounts Tables; U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Weekly and Hourly Earnings Data from the Current Population Survey.

Appendix: A Formal Model of a Firm’s Hiring Decision

Figure 9. 9: Marginal Revenue Product of Labor and Marginal Factor Cost of Labor