64% of the population is living paycheck-to-paycheck

I agree 2600 people is nothing one can draw a conclusion from …

just our building alone would be hard to draw any conclusion from since incomes and wealth are all over the map where we live
 

My purely unscientific life observation: people's financial situations usually mirror their parents' financial habits.

Children growing up in families who live within their means tend to repeat that pattern when they hit adulthood.
Families who are always financially overextended tend to spawn offspring with poor financial skills. Some are saved from that fate when they marry people who take over the finances and keep the household solvent.
 

StarSong said:
My purely unscientific life observation: people's financial situations usually mirror their parents' financial habits.

Children growing up in families who live within their means tend to repeat that pattern when they hit adulthood.
Families who are always financially overextended tend to spawn offspring with poor financial skills. Some are saved from that fate when they marry people who take over the finances and keep the household solvent.
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I think even that premise can be random .

my parents had little and I lived in a housing project growing up .

when I was old enough to work I made a promise to ,myself I would never not only not raise my own family in the projects but I won’t deny myself or family things we would like that we can do .

i had enough of what I will call restricted living
 
Grampa Don said:
To be fair, a lot of people just don't earn enough to put money aside while paying the rent, putting clothes on their kids, and decent food on the table. I think it has always been this way.
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Your absolutely right and that in itself is a sad state of affairs. There's a myriad of reasons why that is the case, some of which are not the fault of people who suffer through those financial hardships.
 
C50 said:
I have to wonder how many of those paycheck to paycheck households are self created. So many people live beyond their means, fancy phones and plans, cable/internet, huge homes, dinners out often, credit card debt, etc. So much can be avoided.
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I think there are many many people in the so called working class whose hardworking lives remain one of constant struggle.
 
It wasn’t until I realized I had to hustle in life taking on a second job and then starting a side business, while working full time. Eventually it paid off and My husband and I were able to have a full time business with employees. This is when we had more financial freedom. Either you go to college and get into a high paying profession or hustle in life. Pay check to pay check is nothing new. Young people thing they are owed a good living with little sacrifice.
 
Murrmurr said:
I'll take that hug, Autumn, thank you.

Michelle and I are still discussing it. We're going to do what's best for her, since she'll be here longer. She just needs to tell me what that is...and then we'll do what I think is best. ;)
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And you what about you now?
Not to be overly, selfish, yet you must have some joy from all this marrying a young woman is a treat for you. And all you put into this relationship to allow it to work for both.
You signed up for it though, sacrifices are made with v equal satisfaction. Isn't there a song about this a while back.
How much time does she have for schooling?
You do have a foster child too.
How is she or he doing so far?
It does help with all that time way from each other. Good luck with your efforts.

With all the grandparents wishing they could see their own grand children you are able to fill in that void. Good job.
 
Companies are always paying the absolute lowest they can get away with. It is a pervasive culture of greed, not just without a moral center, but even without much common sense.

You pay people well, they do a good job and are loyal. And, in life, they don't feel abused. They become nicer people and better citizens. It keeps crime rates lower. Everything about treating people fairly makes all of society better.

You treat everyone like a con man's mark, to get the most out of them, while giving the least? You make everyone upset and angry.

You destabilize families and make everyone in society miserable.

And companies don't have to give away the farm. Companies can pay their employees good solid wages, with good working conditions and decent benefits, and still make plenty of money.

But people just surrender to greed, play rhetoric games to justify being horrible to people, care only about themselves, treat life like a war of "every man for himself," are devoting to making the maximum dollar possible....as if being worth $20 million is not enough. Unless they suppress worker wages and benefits so that they can be worth $200 million...they feel they aren't getting enough.

Back in 1978, we knew a guy who left high school, went right to work in Ford plant in Linden, NJ...and started making $18 an hour ($55 an hour in today's dollars). Now, not everyone could get a great union job like that...but they were out there.

One of my idiot musician friends, same year, was a waiter at a fancy country club, made $11 an hour then (about $45 an hour in today's dollars). He was 16, I think. And, an idiot. I remember the 60s and 70s when many of the men on the block worked 40 hour weeks, could afford a house, a car and support a wife and two kids...and send them off to college.

I know the pay levels now are an obscene abuse...because I saw it with my own eyes, when companies obeyed some standards of human decency.

Just a bunch of greedy thieves is all...
 
Autumn72 said:
And you what about you now?
Not to be overly, selfish, yet you must have some joy from all this marrying a young woman is a treat for you. And all you put into this relationship to allow it to work for both.
You signed up for it though, sacrifices are made with v equal satisfaction. Isn't there a song about this a while back.
How much time does she have for schooling?
You do have a foster child too.
How is she or he doing so far?
It does help with all that time way from each other. Good luck with your efforts.

With all the grandparents wishing they could see their own grand children you are able to fill in that void. Good job.
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Baby "K" is doing very well; growing a lot and getting stronger. We're actually getting some smiles out of her now. She was so stoic and detached at first, so smiles are a great leap forward. She's fussy in the evenings, but I think that's normal. She sleeps just fine....when she sleeps.

I'm doing pretty well, too. I should be getting a corticosteroid-plus injection in my spine soon. They said they'll call on Monday to get it scheduled. The last one didn't work so well, but I'll give it one more try. Soon as it wears off, I'm gonna have the surgery.

Yes, there is quite an age gap between Michelle and I, but she seems fine with it. She says she's perfectly happy about the whole deal. I certainly have no complaints.

She has school 3 days a week and works part-time on those days, full time on the others, so I try to have dinner ready for her when she gets home and I do as much of the housework as Li'l K will allow. I lived alone a long time, so this is nothing new to me. Michelle will get her credential to be a preschool teacher in about a month. She works at a preschool now, but as a teacher's aid. She wants to be a full-time K-12 teacher, so she'll keep going to school for at least another year.

You said, "It does help with all that time way from each other." I agree. We do cherish our time together, though, very much.

You also said, "Good luck with your efforts." Thank you for that, Autumn. Hopefully won't take quite so much effort after that injection. :)
 
JonSR77 said:
Companies are always paying the absolute lowest they can get away with. It is a pervasive culture of greed, not just without a moral center, but even without much common sense.
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This is a very unfair generalization. DH & I paid our employees more than the going rate, treated them very well, and maintained our moral center. Also our common sense.

Many companies and corporations are well regarded by their employees. The stinkers tend to have high turnover and lousy reputations.
 
RadishRose said:
64% of the population is living paycheck-to-paycheck.

How does anyone know that? Was it a survey? How many people were asked? By whom?

I have seen articles on the Internet exclaiming something like "85% of Americans believe in Santa Claus".... when you read the article you find only 2500 people were surveyed. Out of billions.
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That doesn't matter. The maths of statistics is complicated, but taking a random sample, you need surprisingly few answers to have a high confidence in the result. Choosing who you ask to get a truly representative sample is very important.
 
JonSR77 said:
You pay people well, they do a good job and are loyal. And, in life, they don't feel abused. They become nicer people and better citizens. It keeps crime rates lower. Everything about treating people fairly makes all of society better.
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The issue at hand is SOME people simply put............. will tell you they are underpaid regardless of how much they make ....
I worked for a very generous company and even then there were the few whom did very little constructive to earn it .......acted as if they were owed more and spent money like there was no tomorrow........
how does one measure output ..... and pay accordingly ... if the pay scale is too low it is the employees CHOICE to seek a better position.
These are the same folks found out while doing "remote" did not pull their weight and some were let go .....
 
Jeni said:
The issue at hand is SOME people simply put............. will tell you they are underpaid regardless of how much they make ....
I worked for a very generous company and even then there were the few whom did very little constructive to earn it .......acted as if they were owed more and spent money like there was no tomorrow........
how does one measure output ..... and pay accordingly ... if the pay scale is too low it is the employees CHOICE to seek a better position.
These are the same folks found out while doing "remote" did not pull their weight and some were let go .....
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Before I retired and during a major change in my company, I was one of the ones chosen (trusted) to work at home. It was so great!

Why? I was reliable, knew my job, punctual, and worked my shift rather than fool around.
 
RadishRose said:
Before I retired and during a major change in my company, I was one of the ones chosen (trusted) to work at home. It was so great!

Why? I was reliable, knew my job, punctual, and worked my shift rather than fool around.
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Many companies (in the remote experience of the last couple of years) identified those who Can........ and those who are NOT to be trusted in putting in time OR effort.
For those extremely upset that may end many did it to themselves by not doing what they were suppose to.
Some companies watched through laptop cameras or had items on computers showing idle time etc.
I am amused at those folks that acted surprised at that fact...as we all most likely had co-workers etc that did the bare minimum every single day in an office or workplace.
Rate of pay has nothing to do with it ...... $$ does not correct bad work ethic or change a persons demeanor ...
if they are a slacker they will be regardless if you pay them double.
 
Jeni said:
Many companies (in the remote experience of the last couple of years) identified those who Can........ and those who are NOT to be trusted in putting in time OR effort.
For those extremely upset that may end many did it to themselves by not doing what they were suppose to.
Some companies watched through laptop cameras or had items on computers showing idle time etc.
I am amused at those folks that acted surprised at that fact...as we all most likely had co-workers etc that did the bare minimum every single day in an office or workplace.
Rate of pay has nothing to do with it ...... $$ does not correct bad work ethic or change a persons demeanor ...
if they are a slacker they will be regardless if you pay them double.
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Companies are also discovering the greater extent to which communal workspaces facilitate synergy and collaboration - even during informal conversations between employees. Water cooler type stuff. ("Hey, have you talked to anyone from XYZ company lately? No? Turns out my kid is on the same soccer team as a guy who works there. During our most recent blow-out loss of 6-0, don't ask how my kid did - let's just say he's more interested in daisies than chasing the ball. Aaanyway, the dad mentioned that the widget account manager is retiring this month. Yeah, I'm talking about guy who was always such a pain to negotiate with that we dropped them from our vendor list. He said the new guy is a lot more flexible. You might want to give them another look. Their product line, delivery and prices were always good...")

Having worked for some quite large companies, I assure you the above exchanges are more commonplace than people might imagine.

Long term employees who are accustomed to working together maintain some of this even while working from home, but newer employees have no such history and are shut out of that process.

For companies, discontinuing a WFH option isn't merely a matter of ensuring employees are giving their jobs full attention, it's a return to reaping expected and unexpected benefits of teams working together.
 
Jace said:
Just heard on the news...64% of the population is living paycheck-to-paycheck.
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hollydolly said:
40% of UK households are just one paycheque from potential homelessness.
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I could never understand this, no matter how little money I had I have always adjusted my lifestyle to have some savings.

It is almost always possible to spend a bit less, not many people live at the absolute minimum. Probably a few do, but I suspect most of these folks are just spending all they can.

Clothes and household goods can come from Goodwill or thrift shops, and there are a lot of cheap foods in the grocery. Not always the most convenient or nutritious but livable.

There were times when I was young I lived that way. I am lucky not to have to now, but I know I could if necessary.
 
Alligatorob said:
I could never understand this, no matter how little money I had I have always adjusted my lifestyle to have some savings.

It is almost always possible to spend a bit less, not many people live at the absolute minimum. Probably a few do, but I suspect most of these folks are just spending all they can.
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I always think of one co-worker in particular.....
we started in a company that was back logged so often had a lot of OT ..... She would plan on how ...she would divide her upcoming check and every day ..... she would say things like "we bought dinner out last night it was more then we planned but since we have OT I can do it...gave a loan to someone/ bought new clothes etc but we have OT I can do it... ........
the only problem is her and her child fell ill and she missed 2 days ..... all her plans about affording things were based on a check for work she had not completed now she was short 2 days of wages and even working weekend would be regular time not OT.

This happened at few places i worked ... i call it the OT / holiday fantasy....
A holiday or OT coming up ... if we worked got time and a half sometimes plus a day of holiday .....
many co workers saying similar versions of "I will pay X amount on some bill / credit card etc" ... then in the week they would indulge in fancy coffees and lunches and just say "oh well i will pay Y on bill now ... still good....."
if an illness or some other item happened ... they had already spent money that simply is not coming now...
and their idea of paying some bill/ credit card was down to minimum payment so zero progress on finances
I thought some would learn but same people doing same dance EVERY time.
 
I've certainly had times in my life when I lived paycheck to paycheck mostly because my ex-husband was fired from several jobs and always took his time finding another. One time he took five YEARS to find gainful employment. So the only income we had was mine. And I wasn't making a high wage. But I knew how to make one dollar go the way of ten so, although there weren't many extras during that time, we didn't suffer either. And yes, I was distressed by my ex-husband's attitude not just about work but about a lot of things. Thankfully that is all in my rear-view mirror now.
 
As I live longer and longer I believe in surveys less and less. Manufacturing all went south of the border to Mexico and over to China. All we seem to produce is surveys after surveys after surveys. We are getting survived to death!

I do feel sorry for folks that are "down and out." However, let's look at the big picture. First of all, most folks have little or no discipline. They want everything NOW! The credit card has become the curse of this century for folks that have no restrain and no discipline. The houses in Canada are way too big. Some homes are 3,000 square feet have only 2 people living there. It's a crime!

Then there are the "Jones." They have the 3 car garage, the 3 or 4 vehicles in the driveway. The Jones have bought, (on credit, of course) snowmobiles for the winter (one for him and one for her) and personnel water crafts for the summer ( of course, one for him and one for her). The Jones living in the country have to have at least one ATV. If they live by the lake they must have a pontoon boat to sit and drink beer.

Having a cottage by the lake is very popular in most parts of Canada. These are not tiny little weekend places of escape. Nope, some are huge with a 3 car garage. Yup, imagine it. Paying a mortgage for the big home in the city and then paying for a nice big villa by the lake. All bought by cheap interest rates with hardly any money down.

No, I feel sorry for folks that are down and out but I sure don't feel sorry for those "keeping up with the Jones." There is a lot of fat that needs to be cut in this country. I think the increasing interest rates and the inflation is going to cut a lot of that fat and I, for one, is really looking forward to this cutting. I think a better society will eventually emerge from the current madness.
 

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Capt Lightning said:
That doesn't matter. The maths of statistics is complicated, but taking a random sample, you need surprisingly few answers to have a high confidence in the result. Choosing who you ask to get a truly representative sample is very important.
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It really want random .. it was 2600 at the lending club …..they loan money to people in debt
 

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