Gurgaon :While the national economy continues to show improvement, worker’s personal economic situations are continuing to suffer. Fifty-eight per cent of workers say they are living paycheque to paycheque just to make ends meet. This is according to CareerBuilder India’s survey of 1000 workers across India conducted by Consumer Analysis Limited during August 2014. An additional, 28 per cent say they sometimes live paycheque to paycheque.
While 85 per cent of workers claim to be financially responsible, the ability to make ends meet has come as a result of cut backs they have had to make in their everyday lives. When asked what tactics they used to make ends meet, workers said:
• Cut back on leisure activities – 40%
• Used public transport – 34%
• Stopped eating out – 29%
• Drove less to save on petrol – 27%
• Use coupons/vouchers/shopped at discount stores – 23%
• Took a second job – 17%
Though workers say they have given things up to help with their financial situation, there a few things that, when asked, they could absolutely not live without, including mobile devices (58%), internet connection (57%), cable tv (32%), new clothes (27%), and traveling (25%).
“Fifty-three per cent of workers say that they are currently earning their desired salary. Maintaining that desired quality of life is front of mind for workers and they are being forced to make adjustments to stretch their paychequesand merely get by,” said Mr.Premlesh Machama, MD,CareerBuilder India.
The fallout from the recession may be causing not just short-term problems for workers, but long-term issues as well as some people are not focused on their financial future. One in ten workers say they are not saving any money each month, while 26 per cent save less than 5,000INR and 49 per cent less than 10,000INR.
areerBuilder India offers the following tips for improving financial health:
Audit your expenses immediately! – Takeout coffee, restaurant lunches and other common everyday expenses can make a dent in your bank account. Create a spreadsheet to analyse what you spend each month, and once you can see where your money goes, you can more easily see where you can cut back.
Every little bit counts for your future – Regardless of the amount, set aside money each month for your short and long-term savings. If you have trouble remembering or fitting savings into your budget, try setting up an automatic transfer into a savings account.
Investigate your savings and discounts – Talk to your HR department about how you can make the most of the benefits at your organisation. Find out if your company offers discounts to stores or for other services, and ask about how you can make sure you’ve selected the right benefits plans for your budget.