The high cost of living in British Columbia is taking its toll, with almost half of all workers in the province just scraping by, according to a Canadian Payroll Association report released September 7.
Forty-nine per cent of all workers in B.C. spend all – or more – of their income every month. This is nine percentage points higher than the national average of 40%.
More than half of all B.C. respondents (53%) say they would be unable to meet their financial obligations if their pay was delayed by even one week (48% nationally). More than a quarter of all B.C. workers (27%) say they would likely be unable to scrape up $2,000 for an emergency expense within the next month.
Part of the problem, according to the report, is that pay hasn’t increased much in recent years.
“Survey data suggests that household income growth has stalled, as respondents reporting household income above $100,000 has hardly increased in five years,” said Alec Milne of research firm Framework Partners.
“In fact, real incomes have actually declined when inflation is taken into account.
Debt, on the other hand, has increased. In this province, 92% of respondents say they carry debt, and 48% said they feel “overwhelmed” by their debt levels. This is the highest level in Canada, with the national average at 39%. Thirty-two per cent of B.C. workers say their debt has increased this year alone, and 11% say they will probably never be debt-free.
Higher wages wasn’t noted as the top priority for respondents in British Columbia, however. While 31% said they wanted a higher wage, almost half of all respondents (46%) said their top concern is striking a better work-life balance.
@EmmaHampelBIV
