Answer:
approximately 684 employees
Step-by-step explanation:
So this is an exponential equation since there is a dividing decrease, not just subtracting. The standard equation is,
[tex]y = a(b)^{x} [/tex]. [tex]a[/tex] is initial value (860 employees) and [tex]b[/tex] is the change [tex]-8%[/tex] or [tex]0.92[/tex]. The [tex]x[/tex] would be the period of time, [tex]19[/tex]. This equation would be [tex]y = 860(0.92)^{19} [/tex].
After solving, the equation would become the following: [tex]y = 860(0.92)^{19} = 176.387242442≈176[/tex]. After subracting the number of lost employees from orginal employees ([tex]860-176=684[/tex]), we see that the company will have approximately 684 employees left after 19 years.