SOLUTION: Three workers can complete a job in 3 hours, 5 hours, and 6 hours, respectively. How long will it take the workers to complete the job if they work together?

Click here to see ALL problems on Travel Word Problems

Question 32150: Three workers can complete a job in 3 hours, 5 hours, and 6 hours, respectively. How long will it take the workers to complete the job if they work together?
Answer by Earlsdon(6294) (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
The key to these kinds of problems is to find the rate (in this case, the hourly rate) at which each worker can accomplish his/her part of the job.
Worker A can do the job in 3 hours, so he/she can do 1/3 of the job in 1 hour.
Worker B can do the job in 5 hours, so he/she can do 1/5 of the job in 1 hour.
Worker C can do the job in 6 hours, so he/she can do 1/6 of the job in 1 hour.
Working together, they can do 1/3 + 1/5 + 1/6 of the job in 1 hour.
=
If they can do of the job in 1 hour, then they can do the complete job in hours.
hours = 1 hour 25.7 minutes.