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63% of US workers unable to pay a $500 emergency expense, survey finds

⁨425⁩ ⁨likes⁩

Submitted ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago⁩ by ⁨return2ozma@lemmy.world⁩ to ⁨workreform@lemmy.world⁩

https://www.cnbc.com/2023/08/31/63percent-of-workers-are-unable-to-pay-a-500-emergency-expense-survey.html

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Comments

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  • BertramDitore@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    What the fuck is this? “How employers might help change that” Answer: they wont, they just might be forced to let employees give themselves a fee-free loan from their own retirement account, oh and here’s a slightly different new emergency savings account. It’s still all just your money…What the actual fuck?

    What about the half of US workers that don’t have a retirement account? I guess fuck them?

    Isn’t the answer simple? HIGHER WAGES.

    Man, this made me incredibly angry.

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    • SCB@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      Paying higher wages doesn’t get people to start bank accounts, much less retirement accounts.

      Many people on the poorer end of the spectrum literally hide money in their walls/mattresses rather than get bank accounts - I know many of these people firsthand.

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      • dangblingus@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

        A bank account isn’t going to magically make you richer.

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    • lateraltwo@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      Higher wages or lower costs, but lower costs would kill the stock market

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      • mayo@lemmy.today ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

        And if you’re in a HCOL city the municipality is probably thriving off the property taxes.

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  • AnotherPerson@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    I just want to know what type of emergency only costs $500 anymore?

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    • Tolookah@discuss.tchncs.de ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      Uber to the hospital.

      Emergency pizza and ice cream?

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    • inclementimmigrant@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      A simple blown tire that renders you only reliable way to work that doesn’t pay enough to cover your basic living expenses is a catastrophic emergency that could cost around 500 bucks.

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    • southsamurai@sh.itjust.works ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      A part of a tree falling on your windshield.

      Seriously, that’s what it ended up costing me, and I did part of the body work needed to be able to fit a new windshield in right. If I hadn’t kept the tools around, that would have been another 500.

      Mind you, the 500 I did pay out included some other body work I just couldn’t physically do. The glass and installation of the glass was “only” 150 ish (can’t remember what the tax was).

      The one before that, that was barely under 500 was the AC unit for the house freezing up and fucking the compressor.

      And 500 is a single emergency. You get hit by multiple, and you’re fucked .

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      • SocialMediaRefugee@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

        Had a tree limb fall during a storm and crush my wife’s car roof. That was an f.u. moment.

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    • ohlaph@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      Exactly. A cheap car repair is that with labor. Add kore than one thing in a few months and most people start to really bleed.

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  • AccmRazr@lemm.ee ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    And somehow these CEOs are still talking about pandemic money 3 years later.

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    • jubilationtcornpone@sh.itjust.works ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      They are. And it would be funny if it weren’t such utter bullshit. As if the sizeable chunk of the population that lives paycheck to paycheck could actually afford to hold on to a couple thousand dollars in stimulus funds. When shit is waaayyyy more expensive than it was 3 years ago and wages haven’t really climbed that much.

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    • Morcyphr@lemmy.one ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      My employer got $600,000 in ERC. Meanwhile, I haven’t had a pay increase in over 2 years. Been with the company for over 10 years.

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    • ohlaph@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      The $800 stimi will never be forgotten.

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    • greendakota99@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      The “pandemic money” is the $2,000 I was given 3 years ago? No, I still have that squared away in case of a rainy day.

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  • Clown_Tempura@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    Nobody has any fucking money. You can’t afford medical, you can’t afford a house, you can barely afford a car. You can barely afford rent. Everything is more expensive. Food, gas, everything. Wages can’t keep up with inflation and employers could give a shit.

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    • CADmonkey@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      And yet nothing is being set on fire.

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    • ilickfrogs@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      Time for a good old fashioned French revolution.

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      • SocialMediaRefugee@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

        That worked out so well…

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  • dangblingus@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    How employers may help change that? PAY YOUR FUCKING PEOPLE MORE MONEY.

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  • quams69@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    I work full time for CVS and I have 26 cents in my bank account, nevermind 500. I literally cannot save, every cent is expenses.

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  • Sanctus@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    I’m tired, boss.

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  • malloc@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    This is why predatory payday loan companies still exist.

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  • 1984@lemmy.today ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    The land of the fee.

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  • okamiueru@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    America is kinda fucked up. Seeing it from the outside, nothing is surprising, the solutions are fairly obvious. If nothing else, the direction in which to go. Yet, it’s just dumb and dumber.

    You had a real shot at change with Bernie Sanders. At least one of the three pieces. At this point, you’ll have a revolution within the next 5-10 years that changes the two party system, or it’s lights out.

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    • SCB@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      Neither of these options is going to happen. The country will not fail, and there will be no revolution.

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    • librechad@lemm.ee ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      Whatever happened to Andrew Yang? Been praying for my universal income

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      • BrandonMatrick@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

        Yanggang is still around, but it’s not looking likely we’re getting any kind of party nomination. I think it’s microwaved Bidem for dinner this round.

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  • SocialMediaRefugee@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    I still see LOTS of people with massive trucks, muscle cars and SUVs though.

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    • CADmonkey@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      Next time you see one of the fancy lifted “brodozer” trucks, pay attention to the tires. Often times they’re in bad shape, nearly worn out.

      That’s because they bought this thing for $700 per month and never took into account that the fancy tires are $300+ each.

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    • bob_wiley@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago
      [deleted]
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      • dfc09@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

        True, financial literacy is pretty lacking, but that’s more of an education issue than “their fault”

        Most dealerships and banks will happily approve a loan that’s too high to be realistic. It’s predatory, I make $20/hr and got approved for up to $300k for a mortgage. I bought a house worth half that and it’s still a lot. Just feel like banks really shouldn’t let people sign loans worth 80% of their monthly income

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      • escapesamsara@discuss.online ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

        Financially illiteracy is a point; but it’s not a point for 50+% of the US. Median wage is $50k/year, which is far too low to ever purchase a home, so they’re affected by the median rent being $1,383. which is half their net income.

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  • Strangle@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    How much has the price of milk gone up in the last 4 years?

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  • inclementimmigrant@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    Same article from decades ago. This is nothing new, it’s not gotten better, it won’t get better anytime soon.

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  • yessikg@lemmy.film ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    Employers could pay their employees’ student loans, stop forcing them to commute, and pay them well

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  • luckyhunter@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    “Rich men North of Richmond” intensifies!

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  • Hazdaz@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    Americans live above their means.

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    • SoBoredAtWork@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      Yeah. Too much avocado toast. /s

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    • LaunchesKayaks@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      God forbid I treat myself to something nice once a year.

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  • lapommedeterre@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    That’s no bueno

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