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Due to weather conditions, all classes today, Friday, March 31, will be held as scheduled. Saturday, April 1, in-person classes and services will start at 10:00 a.m. Online classes and services will occur as scheduled. Please check email for further details.

ECON 313 Labor Economics

This course assesses the role of labor as a production factor in the economy, as well as the factors affecting the supply of, and demand for, labor. Topics include: determinants of labor supply and demand; analysis of labor markets; theories of wages and employment; income and wage inequality among occupations, industries and regions; the role of labor unions and collective bargaining as they affect supply and demand conditions; and the relationships among wages, inflation, unemployment and government policies.

Prerequisites

4 Undergraduate credits

Effective August 1, 1998 to present

Meets graduation requirements for

Learning outcomes

General

  • Develop a deeper understanding of the role labor markets play in our economy, and current labor policy issues being discussed and debated.
  • Analyze the effects of public policy on the labor market.
  • Develop a framework for understanding how wages are determined and apply this framework to novel situations.
  • Use the framework's economic concepts to evaluate the effects of exogenous changes on wages, including public policy changes.

Minnesota Transfer Curriculum

Goal 5: History and the Social and Behavioral Sciences

  • Employ the methods and data that historians and social and behavioral scientists use to investigate the human condition.
  • Examine social institutions and processes across a range of historical periods and cultures.
  • Use and critique alternative explanatory systems or theories.
  • Develop and communicate alternative explanations or solutions for contemporary social issues.