Of the 3,600 employees of Company X, 1/3 are clerical. If the clerical

Question

Of the 3,600 employees of Company X, 1/3 are clerical. If the clerical staff were to be reduced by 1/3, what percent of the total number of the remaining employees would then be clerical?

(A) 25%
(B) 22.2%
(C) 20%
(D) 12.5%
(E) 11.1%

terp26 · Accepted Answer

Welcome, just post the question and the choices


Let's see, the way I did it was

1/3 are clerical out of 3600 so 1200 are clerical

1200 reduced by 1/3 is 1200*1/3

so it reduced 400 people , so there is 800 clerical people left

but since 400 people left, it also reduced from the total of 3600 so there are 3200 people total


since 800 clerical left / 3200 people total

you get (A) 25%

alexxx4 · Answer

Why do you divide by 3200 (= 3600-400) ?

May be it's due to my english skills and my understanding of "the clerical staff were to be reduced by 1/3" : I thought that the 400 persons were no more clerical but STILL employees of company X !

Thanks for explaining

neo4897 · Answer

what percent of the total number of the  remaining  employees would then be clerical?

The questions states "remaining employees".

RaviChandra · Answer

can do the same with smaller no.(though in thsi sum the numbers are easy to divide) this method will be very useful later

consider total members 90. 30 Cl.... 10 left

so 20/80=25%

swanidhi · Answer

The figure 3600 is misleading. Since the answer demands percentages and the statements use ratio, we can pick any number to our convenience.
For easier calculation take 36
So clerical employees left = 36 x 1/3 x 1/3 = 4
Remaining clerical employees = 36 x 1/3 - 4 = 8
Total employees left = 36-4 = 32
Req percentage = (Remaining clerks/Total remaining employees)*100 = 8/32*100 = 25%

ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

We are given that there are 1/3 x 3,600 = 1,200 clerical employees. If that number is reduced by 1/3, there are now 2/3 x 1,200 = 800 clerical employees. Also, the total number of employees at the company will be reduced from 3,600 to 3,200.
 
Thus, the new percentage of clerical employees would be 800/(3600 - 400) = 800/3200 = 25%.
 
Answer: A

esonrev · Answer

Why does (1/3)*(2/3) = (2/9) = 22.2% not suffice?

Thanks!

metalslugg3r · Answer

I used ratios to solve this one:

From stem - Make a ratio of Clerical: Non-Clerical: Total
1:2:3

Pump that up so its easier to reduce clerical by a third:
3:6:9 -becomes -> 2:6:8 (3 - ⅓(3)=2))

2/8 =¼ = 25%

Cheers

BrentGMATPrepNow · Answer

If 1/3 of the 3,600 employees are clerical, then there are  1200  clerical workers.

If 1/3 of the  1200  clerical staff are laid off, then 400 clerical workers are laid off.

This means there are  800  clerical workers remaining.

Since 400 workers were laid off, the NEW employee population = 3600 - 400 =  3200

"What percent of the total number of the remaining employees would then be clerical?"

Of the  3200  workers,  800  are clerical workers

800 / 3200  = 1/4 = 25%

Answer: A

Basshead · Answer

We have 3,600 employees.

1/3 of 3,600 are clerical = 1,200

Clerical staff was reduced by 1/3 = 800 remaining

Number of remaining employees = 800/3200 = 25%

We remove 400 from 3,600 because the clerical staff was reduced -- they're not going to be kept as an employee in another role.

Answer is A.

soft123 · Answer

Since it's percent of total remaining (2/9)/(8/9)
8/9 is the remaining employee 1- (1/3)(1/3)

GMATCoachBen · Answer

This is a common trap.

The problem is that the TOTAL is changing too.

The word “ remaining ” is often an essential marker word, signaling that we must also subtract from the total.

Suppose we started with 9 employees.

3 are clerical.

1 clerical worker is "reduced", so now we have a  new total of only 8 employees , and 2 clerical workers.

So, we must do 2 /  8  =    25%   , not 2/9.

More broadly, it's essential to build  habits for proactive error prevention.

My students find this doc helpful:  GMAT Habits for Proactive and Mindful Error Prevention: How to Dodge Common Traps (by   Ben@GMATcoach.com )

I suggest making your own copy of this doc and adding to it, based on your own mistakes and insights.

GMATCoachBen · Answer

Here's 3 more to try, that have similar traps: 
 
   https://gmatclub.com/forum/in-may-mrs-lee-s-earnings-were-60-percent-of-the-lee-family-94987.html#p731188

https://gmatclub.com/forum/of-the-800-employees-of-company-x-70-percent-have-been-with-93778.html#p721534

https://gmatclub.com/forum/when-2-9-of-the-votes-on-a-certain-resolution-have-been-counted-128471.html#p1052792

Shreyaarora · Answer

easy one- can solve it in few seconds. 
1/3 of 3600 =1200.
&then further 1/3 of 1200 is 400. So, 400 is reduced

now the numbers are 800 & 3200. so, 800/3200 gives us 25%.

egmat · Answer

This is a classic problem that catches many students off guard. The trick here is recognizing that when people leave the company, you're not just changing the number of clerical workers—you're changing the  total  number of employees too. Let me walk you through this.

Here's how to think about this step by step:

Step 1: Find your starting point 
You've got 3,600 total employees, and 1/3 are clerical:
Clerical employees =  \frac{1}{3} 	imes 3,600 = 1,200  clerical workers

Step 2: Calculate the reduction in clerical staff 
Now the clerical staff gets reduced by 1/3. Notice this is 1/3 of the  clerical  staff, not 1/3 of all employees:
Reduction =  \frac{1}{3} 	imes 1,200 = 400  employees leave
Remaining clerical =  1,200 - 400 = 800  clerical workers

Step 3: Here's the critical insight—adjust your total! 
This is where most students slip up. When 400 employees leave, the company's total headcount drops too:
New total employees =  3,600 - 400 = 3,200

You can't use 3,600 anymore—that's the old total. This is what creates the trap answer!

Step 4: Calculate the final percentage 
Now you're ready to find what percentage of the  remaining  workforce is clerical:
 	ext{Percentage} = \frac{800}{3,200} = \frac{1}{4} = 25\%

Answer: (A) 25%

Watch out for this trap:  If you incorrectly used 800/3,600 (forgetting to adjust the total), you'd get 22.2% and pick choice (B). That's exactly what the test-makers are hoping you'll do!

The takeaway:  In percentage problems where something gets removed or reduced, always ask yourself: "Does my denominator need to change too?"

You can check out the  complete solution on Neuron by e-GMAT  to learn the systematic framework for identifying and solving all "changing totals" problems. You'll also discover the common variations of this concept and how to spot them instantly. For comprehensive practice with detailed solutions to other official questions, explore  Neuron here .

Of the 3,600 employees of Company X, 1/3 are clerical. If the clerical

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