Let’s say a newspaper, BeritaHarian (printed in Selangor) costs RM0.50 in 1980 and RM1.20 in 2006. The average wage rate in printing industry in Selangor was RM3.23 per hour in 1980 and RM14.32 in 2006.
a. By what percentage did the price of a newspaper rise?
b. By what percentage did the wage rise?
c. In each year, how many minutes does a worker have to work to earn enough money to buy BeritaHarian?
d. Did workers’ purchasing power in terms of newspaper rise or fall?
a. To find the percentage rise in the price of the newspaper, we can use the formula:
Percentage rise = ((New Price - Old Price) / Old Price) * 100
Using the given information:
Old Price = RM0.50
New Price = RM1.20
Percentage rise = ((1.20 - 0.50) / 0.50) * 100
Percentage rise = (0.70 / 0.50) * 100
Percentage rise = 140%
Therefore, the price of the newspaper rose by 140%.
b. To find the percentage rise in wages, we can use the same formula:
Percentage rise = ((New Wage - Old Wage) / Old Wage) * 100
Using the given information:
Old Wage = RM3.23 per hour
New Wage = RM14.32 per hour
Percentage rise = ((14.32 - 3.23) / 3.23) * 100
Percentage rise = (11.09 / 3.23) * 100
Percentage rise = 342.66%
Therefore, the wage rose by approximately 342.66%.
c. To find how many minutes a worker needs to work to earn enough money to buy the newspaper each year, we need to divide the wage by the price of the newspaper and then convert it to minutes.
In 1980:
Minutes per newspaper = (Wage per hour / Price of newspaper) * 60
Minutes per newspaper = (RM3.23 / RM0.50) * 60
Minutes per newspaper = 6.46 * 60
Minutes per newspaper = 387.6 minutes
In 2006:
Minutes per newspaper = (Wage per hour / Price of newspaper) * 60
Minutes per newspaper = (RM14.32 / RM1.20) * 60
Minutes per newspaper = 11.93 * 60
Minutes per newspaper = 715.8 minutes
Therefore, in 1980, a worker needs to work approximately 387.6 minutes to earn enough money to buy the newspaper, while in 2006, a worker needs to work approximately 715.8 minutes.
d. To determine whether the workers' purchasing power in terms of the newspaper rose or fell, we need to compare the minutes worked to earn enough money to buy the newspaper in both years.
In 1980, a worker needed to work 387.6 minutes.
In 2006, a worker needed to work 715.8 minutes.
Since the number of minutes required to earn enough money to buy the newspaper increased from 387.6 minutes to 715.8 minutes, it means that the workers' purchasing power in terms of the newspaper fell. It took workers more time to earn enough money to purchase the newspaper in 2006 compared to 1980.
To answer these questions, we need to calculate the following:
a. Percentage increase in the price of the newspaper:
1. Calculate the price increase: RM1.20 (2006) - RM0.50 (1980) = RM0.70
2. Calculate the percentage increase: (Price increase ÷ Initial price) x 100%
=> (RM0.70 ÷ RM0.50) x 100% = 140%
Therefore, the price of the newspaper rose by 140%.
b. Percentage increase in the wage rate:
1. Calculate the wage increase: RM14.32 (2006) - RM3.23 (1980) = RM11.09
2. Calculate the percentage increase: (Wage increase ÷ Initial wage) x 100%
=> (RM11.09 ÷ RM3.23) x 100% = 342.4%
Therefore, the wage rate rose by 342.4%.
c. Minutes needed to earn enough money to buy BeritaHarian:
1. Convert the wages to minutes by dividing the hourly wage by 60 (minutes):
- RM3.23 ÷ 60 = RM0.054 (rounded to 3 decimal places) per minute in 1980
- RM14.32 ÷ 60 = RM0.239 (rounded to 3 decimal places) per minute in 2006
2. Calculate the number of minutes needed to earn the price of the newspaper:
- For 1980, RM0.50 ÷ RM0.054 = 9.259 (rounded to 3 decimal places) minutes
- For 2006, RM1.20 ÷ RM0.239 = 5.021 (rounded to 3 decimal places) minutes
Therefore, in 1980, a worker needed approximately 9.259 minutes to earn enough money to buy BeritaHarian, while in 2006, it took approximately 5.021 minutes.
d. Determining workers' purchasing power in terms of the newspaper:
To compare workers' purchasing power, we observe the change in minutes required to earn enough money to buy the newspaper:
- In 1980, it took 9.259 minutes to earn enough for the newspaper.
- In 2006, it took 5.021 minutes to earn enough for the newspaper.
Since the required minutes decreased from 9.259 to 5.021, workers' purchasing power increased over time.