The table below shows the average cost of a meal in a fast food restaurant and the average wage paid to workers in those restaurants over a period of 20 years.
Prices and Wages in Fast Food Restaurants
Year
Average
Meal Price
Average
Wage
1970
$0.90
$2.10/hr
1980
$2.00
$4.49/hr
1990
$3.20
$5.50/hr
Use the data in the table to create a double line graph showing the average meal prices and the average wages from 1970 to 1990. Use the graph to predict both the average meal price and the average wage in fast food restaurants in the year 2000. Explain how you made your predictions.
Meals per Hour
Approximately 12% of the price of a meal goes to pay the wages of the average worker at a fast food restaurant. Compare the number of meals the restaurant had to sell each hour in 1970 to the number of meals it had to sell each hour in 1990 in order to cover a worker's wages. How could you explain this change in the number of meals needed to cover wages?
Cost of a Car
The cost of an inexpensive new car in 1970 was about $4400, and had increased to about $10,000 in 1990. Compare how long it would take a worker, working 40 hours per week, to earn enough to equal the cost of the new car in 1970 and in 1990. What conclusions can you make from this comparison?
