Cambridge International as and a level Economics Ebook

Figure 8.12 
The supply curve of labour to a firm or industry
206
Cambridge International A Level Economics

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A pecuniary advantage includes things such as the 
weekly wage or monthly salary, any bonus payments, the 
opportunity to work paid overtime and pension prospects. 
Non-pecuniary advantages are numerous and cover an 
almost endless list of factors that have to be taken into 
account by a person considering whether to remain in a job, 
W
0
Number of workers employed
0
W
age rate
LS
1
LS
0
Q
1
Q
0
Q
2
LS
2
(increase in
supply)
(fall in supply)
Figure 8.13 
Shift s in the long-run supply of labour
SELF-ASSESSMENT TASK 
8.6
Polish migrant workers leave Britain in droves
When Poland and seven other Central and Eastern 
European (CEE) countries joined the EU in May 2004, 
the UK experienced one of the largest single waves of 
immigration the country had ever seen. This was mainly 
because the UK, unlike other member states, gave free 
access to the citizens of six of these eight countries. 
(Free access for migrants from Bulgaria and Romania 
followed in 2014.)
By 2008, there were well over one million new CEE 
migrant workers registered for work or who were 
self-employed in the UK. Around 700,000 were from 
Poland, the largest of the new member states. Their 
motives for coming to the UK were economic and 
included high unemployment in Poland, low wages at less 
than one quarter of the UK average, and an opportunity 
to send money back home to their struggling families.
Around 80% of the Polish migrants were younger than 
34 years old. Many went to London and to the East 
Anglia region where there was a desperate shortage 
of agricultural labour. Unlike former Commonwealth 
migrants, Polish workers went to almost every corner of 
the country in search of work. They continue to play an 
important part in the manufacturing, construction, hotel 
and catering industries as well as in agriculture. Polish-
owned businesses, restaurants and shops have also 
become a common sight.
As recession has hit Britain, Polish workers are leaving 
the country and going home in droves. Some of 
those leaving have become unemployed; others have 
become disillusioned by the high cost of living in the 
UK and the effects of the depreciation of the Polish 
zloty. They have also been attracted by the better 
state of the Polish economy and the consequent 
opportunity to work for a more realistic wage in their 
home country.
Source:
Adapted from C. Blume, 
VOA News
, 31 March 2009.
Read the feature below and then answer the questions that follow.
change jobs or even to change occupations. Th
ese include the 
hours of work, job security, holiday entitlement, promotion 
prospects, location of the workplace and whether the job 
is pleasant or satisfying. For many workers, these non-
pecuniary advantages rather than pecuniary advantages 
oft en have a major bearing on their choice of occupation.
Polish migrant workers arriving at Victoria Coach Station