3. What determines
a person’s income?
The SUPPLY of and the
DEMAND for their (particular
brand of) HUMAN CAPITAL
3
4. High or Low Incomes
if you have High DEMAND with low supply then you get
high income (wage rates)
if you have Low DEMAND with high supply then you get
low income (wage rates)
the Wage Rate is the measurement of the relative
scarcity of particular types of workers.
If you want a high income you should develop skills and
capabilities in high DEMAND low SUPPLY occupations.
Make yourself stand out in the crowd.
4
5. to do: MAKE
YOURSELF
SCARCE!!!!
Fine ~ now how would or
should you go about
achieving this objective???
5
6. THE NEW LABOR MARKET
that was then and this is now
NOW
THEN
GLOBAL COMPETITON &
RAPIDLY CHANGING
BASIC SKILLS REQUIRED: TECHNOLOGIES
ASSEMBLY LINE
6
8. Information
The United
States
Economy (b)
Imagination
Manufacturing
8
9. The DEMAND for Labor
is a Derived Demand
Business managers hire workers to
produce a good or service to be sold
for a profit.
Product demand changes so
particular jobs change.
Transferable skills are useful.
Education and training are ongoing.
9
10. Table I: Then & Now
Information and/or
Industrial Age Knowledge Age
Technology change Took years to accomplish Months, weeks to accomplish
Competition Local, state, national Global
Type of production Service, Information &
Manufacturing
Knowledge
Role of workers Manual Laborer Designer, Engineer or
Manager
Skill requirements Strength, dexterity, stamina Scans (see Table II)
Employment Lifetime with one employer Changes jobs at least 6 times.
Changes careers 3 times
Learning span Kindergarten-12th grade Lifetime 10
11. The Demand for Labor
is a Derived Demand
Employers hire workers to help the
business produce goods and services.
If the value of the workers’ production is
greater than the wage the workers are
being paid then the employer will keep the
workers. If the workers “production” value
is less than their wages the workers won’t
be kept.
11
12. The Principle of
Exchange
Employers will hire workers if they
gain more from hiring the workers
than the value the employer gives
up ~ via lost output ~ by not
making the hire.
12
14. …..so ~ he’s identified his
“employment” problem ~
and what can we conclude
about your own particular
and “special” situation?
14
15. ( ceteris paribus )
All other things
“being equal”
You can count on your higher
education leading to your
higher lifetime income
15
16. Dreams Deferred [@ 2002]:
Average Earnings & Education for Adults
E $120,000
a $100,000
r $80,000
n Dropout
$60,000 High School
i
n $40,000 Some College
g $20,000 Associate's
s $0 Bachelor's
Master's
Education
Doctorate
Professional
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2004 - 2005
16
17. remember: if you want to
make a good income you
should make yourself scarce.
Develop marketable skills through:
more education
more training
What skills are likely to be marketable?
17
18. Table II: SCANS 2000
Skills Descriptions
Basics Reading, writing, mathematics, listening, speaking
Thinking Creative thinking, decision making, problem solving,
knowing how to learn, reasoning
Personal Responsibility, self-esteem, sociability, self management,
integrity
Resources Planning, organizing, monitoring, assessing, evaluating,
adjusting
Interpersonal Teamwork, teaching, serving clients/customers, leadership,
negotiating, working with people of diverse cultural backgrounds
Systems Understand social, organizational and technological
systems; monitor and correct systems
Information Acquiring and evaluating, organizing and maintaining, interpreting
and communicating, using computers to process information
Technology Selecting equipment and tools, applying technology to specific
tasks, maintaining and troubleshooting technologies, learning new
technologies 18
23. Interpersonal Skills
team skills
teaching
leadership
negotiating
serving clients/customers
working with people of diverse cultural
backgrounds
23
32. The Marginal Principle
in the Labor Market
A firm will hire workers up to the point
where their wage is equal to their
marginal revenue product
W = MRP
If the employer expect to gain more than
the employer gives up via wages paid
the employer will hire the workers.
32
33. The Hiring Decision and the
Constant Search for Substitutes
The Employer makes the decision
to Hire YOU?
or to Hire a Different Worker?
or to Hire a Machine?
33
34. Main Points ~ Part I
Relative wage is the measure of the relative
scarcity of particular workers.
Relative wages are not a matter of fair or moral
value.
The labor market of the 21st century will be
characterized by rapid technological change,
global competition, demand for highly skilled
workers, numerous job and career changes, and
constant upgrades of skills and knowledge.
34
35. Main Points ~ Part II
The DEMAND for labor is a derived demand.
Education and training improve human
capital and increase peoples’ expected
income.
Relative wages are determined by SUPPLY
and DEMAND.
[+] High wages are earned by workers with very
scarce human capital skills ~ thus there is a low
SUPPLY of these workers with those “special” human
capital skills and a high DEMAND for those same
workers.
35
36. Main Points ~ Part III
[+] Lower wages are earned by workers with less
“special” human capital skills ~ thus there is a higher
SUPPLY of workers with similar human capital and a
lower DEMAND for those workers.
[+] Employers hire workers as long as the employer
expects to gain more than she gives up ~ thus as long as
the expected marginal revenue product of the worker is
greater than the wage the employee will be hired.
REMEMBER YOU NEED TO
MAKE YOURSELF SCARCE!!!!
36