Real-Life Math
Lucida operates a small floral shop from her home. She used to arrange
bouquets in the morning and deliver them by car in the afternoon.
Now, after a knee injury, she is no longer able to drive. She wonders if she
might be able to afford to hire someone part time to do her deliveries.
As
a rehabilitation counselor, it's your job to help Lucida adapt her vocation
to life after her injury. Together you find that she is still physically able
to arrange flowers, but that she won't be able to continue doing deliveries.
You help her look at her budget to find out how she could come up with money
to hire a delivery person.
Currently, this is what Lucida spends per
month on her car:
- $320 lease on car
- $105 car insurance
- $175 on gas and car maintenance
"The math that is done on the job, on the whole, is mostly financial.
But the amount of math you use on a day-to-day basis depends on the career
you decide to specialize in," says Aldred Neufeldt. He is a professor of
community rehabilitation and disability studies.
"You might need to
have knowledge of financial services or accounting. You might need to help
a client set up a budget."
Lucida considers hiring a delivery person
for 2 hours per day, 6 days a week at a rate of $20 per hour. At this rate,
the employee will be expected to provide the vehicle and pay for their own
gas, insurance and maintenance.
Questions:
- If Lucida decides to get rid of her car and hire a delivery person, how
much will she pay per month for the delivery person? (Assume there are 4 weeks
in a month.)
- How much more or less is this than the amount she used to spend doing
her own deliveries?