Achi news desk-
Over the past year, the rise in the cost of living has been the most brutal for those on lower incomes, according to a new report.
The income needed to “live with dignity” has risen faster than inflation, according to a study by the Institut de recherche et d’information socioéconomiques (IRIS).
“People living in poverty or on the border of poverty have less room for maneuver,” said researcher Eve-Line Couture. “It is more difficult to choose between different categories of expenses, and the most important expenses, especially housing and food, are categories that are very sensitive to inflation.”
In 2015, IRIS developed the “Sustainable Income” scale as an alternative indicator of the poverty line.
This includes basic needs and the expenses required to “live with dignity,” such as vacations, cultural trips, and emergency savings.
IRIS measured the index in seven Quebec municipalities for three household profiles: a single person, a single-parent family and a family of four.
IRIS estimates that the sustainable income threshold increased by 6.2% to 19.3% in the last year.
To live decently, a single person will need between $30,738 (Trois-Rivières) and $43,609 (Sept-Îles).
The necessary income for a family of four is between $72,788 (Trois-Rivières) and $86,585 (Sept-Îles).
A family in Sherbrooke, for example, needs an income of $78,563 in 2024 to reach the sustainable income threshold.
This represents a 15.3 percent increase in one year.
A single person in Quebec City needs $35,395, a 13.8% increase over last year.
IRIS has also changed its methodology, as it does every five years, to ensure its data is “as reliable as possible”.
For groceries, IRIS took price readings in all seven regions.
In the past, price readings were taken in Montreal and adjusted to the other regions using other data.
“The 2024 figures are much more representative of the cost of groceries,” she explains.
The IRIS report also shows that a minimum wage is not enough to lift people out of poverty, Couturier notes.
In Montreal, a single person working at minimum wage for 35 hours a week only reaches 68% of their existing income.
According to IRIS, this person would need to earn $27 an hour to reach a sustainable income.
The minimum wage will increase by 50 cents to $15.75 on May 1.
A 65-year-old who receives $16,000 from the Quebec Pension Plan (QPP) in addition to the Guaranteed Income Pension (GIS) and Old Age Pension (OAS), but has no retirement savings, meets only 75% of the minimum sustainable income.
“We can see that getting out of poverty is very demanding for people who retire or work for low wages,” the researcher emphasized.
— This Canadian Press report was first published in French on April 29, 2024.
