For this question, you will be internet searching for some information on the labor market. 2. Begin by searching for information on current trends in the US Labor Markets and answer the following 2 questions:

Has overall employment been rising or falling during the past 3 years? What factors might account for this pattern?

Have US workers' wages been rising or falling during the past 3 years?

Now you will be searching for some information on the minimum wage. Using the website, www.dol.gov or any other sites you wish to use, determine information about the minimum wage. Answer the following questions:

What is the current federal minimum wage in the U.S?

What is the federal minimum wage for workers who receive tips in the US?

What is the current minimum wage for the state that you live in?

Why was the minimum wage law first enacted?

What are the arguments for and against raising the minimum wage?

3. Examine the following marginal costs and marginal benefits associated with air cleanliness for a firm:

Quantity of Clean Air (%)	Marginal Cost ($)	Marginal Benefit ($)
0	50,000	600,000
20	150,000	360,000
40	200,000	200,000
60	300,000	150,000
80	400,000	120,000
100	Infinite	0

A. What is the optimal degree of air cleanliness?

B. What would then be the optimal degree of air pollution?

C. Suppose that a state provides subsidies for companies to build plants that contribute to air pollution. Cleaning up this pollution causes the marginal cost of air cleanliness to rise by $210,000 at each degree of air cleanliness. What is the optimal degree of air cleanliness after this change?

D. Why would we not just want the quantity of pollution to be zero?