In: Economics
1) MRP is the marginal revenue product of a labour, which represents the revenue earned from the last employed worker. So, Brenda shoud only hire workers upto a point where the MRP from the last worker is higher than the cost of employing the worker. The MRP from the 6th labour is $15.50 and the MRP from the 7th labour is $14.75. The equilibrium wage rate is $15. So, Brenda should only 6 workers because the MRP from 6th worker is higher than the equilibrium wage. Brenda should not hire the 7th worker because the MRP from 7th worker is less than the equilibrium wage and hence, she will suffer a loss if she employes the 7th worker.
2) As the minimum wage of $13.5 is less than the equilibrium wage of $15, this minimum wage will not effect the equilibrium wage and the number of pet groomers employed. So, the number of pet groomers employed in the state will be still 148. So option b is the correct answer.
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