The accompanying table describes the relationship between the number of workers hired by a call center each hour and the number of calls the call center can make each hour. The call center has only 1 telephone. The telephone costs the firm $5/hour (regardless of how many calls are made), and each worker is paid $10 per hour.
Given the information in the table above, what is the call center's marginal cost when it goes from making 6 to 16 calls an hour?

Question

The accompanying table describes the relationship between the number of workers hired by a call center each hour and the number of calls the call center can make each hour. The call center has only 1 telephone. The telephone costs the firm $5/hour (regardless of how many calls are made), and each worker is paid $10 per hour.   
Given the information in the table above, what is the call center's marginal cost when it goes from making 6 to 16 calls an hour?

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Marginal cost is the change in total cost divided by the corresponding change in output as output changes from one level to another. The total cost of making 6 calls an hour is $65, and the total cost of making 16 calls an hour is $85. Thus, as the call center goes from making 6 to 16 calls an hour, marginal cost is $2 [= ($85 − $65)/(16 − 6)].

The Accompanying Table Describes the Relationship Between the Number of Workers