Question

The minimum wage in 2003 was $5.15 this was w more than the minimum wage in 1996, how do you write an expression for the minimum wage in 1996?

Answer 1

The minimum wage in 1996 can be expressed as
`$5.50 - w`

Explanation:

The problem states that the minimum wage in 1996 was less than it was in 2003.

How much less? The problem specifies that it was `w` dollars less.

So you can come up with an expression to show that.

2003 . . . . . . . . . . . . . .`$5.50` `larr` minimum wage in 2003
`w` less than that . . . `($5.50 - w)` `larr` minimum wage in 1996

So the answer is
The minimum wage in 1996 can be written as `($5.50 - w)`