Tag: Labor Economics

Construction Site in Thailand

 

A few years back there was a popular video of a human powered ferris wheel in India. I use that clip to talk about labor abundance in the Heckscher–Ohlin model of trade since India is so labor-abundant. Earlier we came across this fantastic video of a construction site in Thailand (another labor rich country). For small construction jobs, the workers will use manpower (literally) instead of machines to drive piles into the ground.  This clip could also be used in a labor economics setting if you’re talking about substitutes in production. Either way, this is a fun-video for class with a pretty nice beat from the tambourine-wielding foreman.

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The Daily Show — Wage Against the Machine

This video does a nice job of describing many of the economic arguments for and against raising the minimum wage in a comical way. The clip is a few years old, but it still does a nice job of discussing many of the common arguments. Note: the clip does include a supply and demand graph, but it labels supply and demand incorrectly! This is a good opportunity to discuss economic misconceptions, as well as the labor supply and labor demand curves.

Thanks to Rebecca Chambers for the clip and description!

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Brooklyn 99 — Name a Rich Juggler

Gina is back after maternity leave, but is missing her child. Terry decides to check in on Gina and ask how she’s handling her new role juggling a new child while still returning to work. Gina points out that juggling isn’t that hard or else you would see a lot of rich performers. Typically people who go through more training and have more human capital are paid better, but that may not be the case for jugglers.

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The Daily Show — Sig Hansen & Deadliest Catch

 

Captain Sig Hansen joins Jon Stewart’s Daily Show to discuss life on an Alaska fishing boat. Hailed as the deadliest job in America, Hansen and his crew can earn tens of thousands of dollars in a matter of days so long as the crew is willing to risk their lives. Jon discusses safety on the boats and the motivation for why an individual would risk their lives.

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Friends — The Job is in Paris

In the beginning of the clip Rachel tells Ross that she got her old job back at Ralph Lauren.  Ross asks if she is still going to take the job in Paris (which she was offered in the previous episode) since she was hired back at her old job.  Rachel says she still wants to go to Paris because when the people at Loui Vuitton found out Ralph Lauren wanted her back they decided to offer her more money.  This clip is a good example of opportunity cost, which is the loss of potential gain from other alternatives when one alternative is chosen.  If Rachel wouldn’t have chosen, the job in Paris she would have been missing out on more money than if she would have stayed.  Since she is taking the job in Paris her opportunity cost is that she will have to leave her friends and family.

Thanks Kailey Werkheiser for the clip and the summary!

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The Pursuit of Happyness — Cold Calling

In The Pursuit of Happyness, Chris (played by Will Smith) is cold calling potential clients in order to increase sales for his company. The salesman who creates the most new clients will be hired on, but because of his personal life he isn’t able to put in the same amount of time as his competitors. Chris discusses a variety of ways he saves time, including not hanging up the phone and not drinking water, each of which would cost him valuable time.

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Just Go With It: Negotiation Scene

Maggie (Bailee Madison) negotiates a deal with Danny (Adam Sandler) when he asks her to act like his daughter. This scene does a great job opening a discussion for consumer/producer surplus in a principles class (or economic rent in a labor class).

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