Final answer:
To calculate the number of workers a firm had before a 3% increase that resulted in 12,772 workers, you need to solve the equation 1.03x = 12,772. The solution is approximately 12,400 workers.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question asks for calculation of the number of workers before a 3% increase that resulted in a total of 12,772 workers. To find the original number of workers, we can set up the equation where x represents the original number of workers:
x + 0.03x = 12,772
Solving for x, we combine like terms to get:
1.03x = 12,772
Then, we divide both sides by 1.03:
x = 12,772 / 1.03
x ≈ 12,400
So, the firm had approximately 12,400 workers before the increase.