Many Michiganders can’t afford basic necessities

Because of unacceptable player behavior off the field, the National Football League has been all over the news. To the league’s credit, though, they’ve been partners with the United Way organization for more than forty years.

Our great state is in the center of Big Ten Country. For non-sports enthusiasts, the Big Ten Conference now has 14 schools, and one of the recent additions is Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey.

I recently discovered that Rutgers was in Michigan this summer for something other than a football game. They conducted a study for the Michigan Association of United Ways. Called ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed), the study dealt with “the population of individuals and families who are working, but are unable to afford the basic necessities of housing, food, child care, and transportation.”

It found that 40 percent of our state’s population falls into that category. In other words, nearly half of Michigan’s population struggles to make ends meet. I think you’ll agree it’s a sad state of affairs when so many Michigan households can’t afford basic needs as defined by ALICE.

As someone that enjoys surveys, studies and numbers, I found ALICE to be as thorough and detailed as any I have ever reviewed. It was almost to the point of being overwhelming.

What hourly wage is needed to make life in Michigan affordable? It varies from county to county, but overall for a family of four (2 adults/2 children), the magic number seems to be just over $25, a number easier to attain if more than one family member works.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 63 percent of our jobs pay less than $20 per hour, with most of them in the $10 to $15 per hour range. And that number is based on a full-time workweek, even as we are evolving into a nation of part-time workers.

In other words, Michigan is an expensive place to reside, while at the same time we are in need of higher paying full-time jobs. I suspect the high cost of living has driven a number of higher end households and businesses to relocate out of Michigan. And that’s on top of the many Michiganders who left looking for jobs during the economic downturn.

ALICE found our population to be very diverse, quite typical in this ever-changing world. Contrarily, it seems the phrase “a typical family of four” is becoming about as rare as a company that still provides a pension plan.

To Michigan’s credit, we were one of the first states to undertake this thorough analysis through United Way and Rutgers University. In many ways, the findings confirm reality.

Somehow, we need to continue to make Michigan an attractive place for businesses to call home. We need to re-establish our workforce as one that’s educated, dependable, reliable and enthusiastic.

I’ve personally observed that Michiganders who have been fortunate are also extremely generous. As we close in on the holidays, please remember to be generous to our neighbors who are in dire need and struggle to balance the budget every month.

While the study points out just how many are struggling, I’m confident that Michigan is poised to become one of the states where businesses want to set up shop and offer well-paying jobs.