A factory employs skilled laborers at$25 per hour and unskilled laborers at $12 per hour. The total hourly cost of the factory's 24 workers is $405. How many of each type of laborer works at the factory.

For this case what you should do is the following system of equations:

x: skilled laborers

y: unskilled laborers

By writing the system we have:

x + y = 24

25x + 12y = 405

Solving the system:

Step 1:

-25x + - 25y = - 600

25x + 12y = 405

Step 2:

-13y = - 195

y = 195/13

y = 15

step 3:

x = 24-y

x = 24-15

x = 9

Answer:

skilled laborers = 9

unskilled laborers = 15