Real-Life Math
Administration and math go hand in hand. Administrators
use math in the basic debit and credits of accounting procedures, whether
it's accounts receivable, accounts payable, sales, purchases or payroll. They
use it for inventory, for budgeting and for comparing quotes.
Marvin
Moorehead is the office manager at a small oil company. Marvin feels he has
a good rapport with his staff of six. He's always been fair to his employees,
regularly praises them for their hard work, and provides yearly raises based
on the cost of living.
Sheila Smith is a reliable and efficient employee.
She works a 40-hour week and has been with the firm for three years. Marvin
is glad to have her on board, so when she asks for a raise he seriously considers
whether he can honor her request and stay within his budget.
"Mr. Moorehead,"
Sheila explains. "I'm earning $7.50 an hour. I have two children to support
and I've had only two raises of 3.5 percent. I'm going further and further
in the hole. I need to earn $20,000 a year just to make ends meet."
Calculate
what Sheila's annual salary was when she first started her job and how much
her weekly salary has increased over the past three years. Then calculate
how much of an hourly increase she'll get if Mr. Moorehead gives her the raise
she is asking for.