In: Economics
Consider a working mother with one child in New Zealand. Her wage rate is $30 per hour, and the maximum hours she can work is 80 hours per week.
a) Draw her budget line. What is the slope of the budget line?
b) In New Zealand, the Family Tax credit (FTC) gives a working mother with one child $113 if her weekly earnings are between $0 to $820. For each additional dollar earned above $820, the tax credit decreases by 25 cents. Draw the budget line under the FTC. What are the slopes of the new budget line?
c) Where does the new budget line intersects with the initial budget line in (a)? What are her income and hours of work at the intersection?
d) Suppose the working mother works 25 hours per week under the
original budget constraint in (a). What is the income effect from
the FTC? What is the substitution effect from the FTC? Will she
work more, less, or ambiguous after the introduction of the
FTC?