MARQUETTE COUNTY, Mich. (WLUC) – An annual report says almost half of Upper Peninsula households are experiencing financial hardship.
According to the new ALICE update, 45% of Upper Michigan households are living paycheck to paycheck.
“They’re employed, they’re making money, but they’re still living paycheck to paycheck,” United Way of Marquette County Executive Director Andrew Rickauer said. “Making those tough decisions every week of ‘Do I get medications? Do I get food? Can I pay rent? Can I afford gas to get to work?’”
The annual ALICE update looks at households in poverty as well as those defined as ALICE, which stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained and Employed. Households classified as ALICE are earning above the Federal Poverty Level but less than what’s needed to survive in the current economy.
The Michigan Association of United Ways Director of ALICE Bobby Dorigo Jones said record inflation in 2022 is a contributing factor to these numbers.
“We saw the inflation for a family’s budget rise by about 8% in the most recent year for the ALICE Project,” Jones said. “While wages increased at the same time, they didn’t keep the pace.”
According to the report, there are about 128,000 households in the Upper Peninsula, and 57,000 are living paycheck to paycheck.
Jones said there’s no single solution to reducing that number.
“We need to both raise the income of households, and we have to help with reigning in these costs that are going out of control,” Jones said. “Also, focus on some of the markets that, not only are expensive, but just hard to find. Thinking about housing and childcare, especially for families.”
Rickauer said there are organizations like United Way that can help those experiencing financial hardship. He leads Marquette County’s United Way.
“[We] work with 26 local agencies, everything that we raise stays here,” Rickauer said. “The primary focus is to help the ALICE population.”
Rickauer and Jones said they would like to see more state programs acknowledging those below the ALICE threshold.
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