Lesson 4 – Percentages simplified

Lesson 4 – Percentages simplified

It’s easy to do the math on your calculator without converting the percentages to decimals.

But you must press the % sign on the calculator to get the right answer.

The CUPE National Per Capita Department often sees this miscalculation in the per capita reports.

Doing the math on a calculator without converting the percentage to a decimal number goes like this:

500

×

25

%

Now you try. I’ll wait…

  • Do the math on your calculator.

Did you get the same answer?

Is your answer $125?

If you got $12,500, it’s probably because you forgot to enter the % sign after 25.

If that’s what happened, take a moment to try again. We will wait for you.

  • Do the math on your calculator, if needed.

Did it work this time? Great!

Next, let’s try to calculate per capita payments in Lesson 5.