Final answer:
In a situation where the amount of money is directly proportional to the number of hours worked, Eric earns $y per hour, where y represents the number of hours he works.
Step-by-step explanation:
In a situation where the amount of money that Eric earns is directly proportional to the number of hours that he works, we can determine how much Eric earns per hour by finding the constant of proportionality or the rate of change. Let's say Eric earns $x when he works y hours. This means that the ratio of earnings to hours is constant, so we can write it as:
x/y = k
where k represents the constant of proportionality or the rate of change. To find this constant, you can use the given information to set up a proportion:
$x/1 hour = $y/y hours
Cross-multiply and solve for x:
x = $y/1 = $y
So, Eric earns $y per hour. Therefore, the amount Eric earns per hour is equal to the number of hours he works.