ABC, Inc., manufactures a single product in which variable manufacturing overhead is assigned on the basis of standard direct labor-hours. The company uses a standard cost system and has established the following standards for one unit of product:
During March, the following activity was recorded by the company:
• The company produced 3,000 units during the month.
• A total of 8,000 pounds of material were purchased at a cost of $23,000.
• There was no beginning inventory of materials on hand to start the month; at the end of the month, 2,000 pounds of material remained in the warehouse.
• During March, 1,600 direct labor-hours were worked at a rate of $6.50 per hour.
• Variable manufacturing overhead costs during March totaled $1,800.
The direct materials purchases variance is computed when the materials are purchased.
The labor rate variance for March is: