Preferred Rebecca picture After 101 days on the picket line the strike by City of Windsor workers is over.  I have given some thought to the financial impact the strike must have had on the workers. My main concern is how the strike affected the average worker.

If you were off work for 3 months could you survive?  How about if you were off work for a month, or a week?  Do you have enough cash in the bank to pay for basic living expenses while you are off work.  For most people I meet, the answer is no.  Most people live pay cheque to pay cheque and missing even one pay cheque can cause significant stress.

When times are good, a missed pay cheque is less of a problem. If you have access to credit, you can simply take a cash advance on your credit card, or line of credit to buy groceries and to pay the rent.  You can pay back the cash advance with your next pay cheque.  But if you are already maxed out on your credit cards and you don’t get a pay cheque, problems develop.

Here is my advice for anyone who is worried about losing some income due to a strike, a layoff, or any time of job loss.  Make a plan now for how you will handle a loss of income if it happens. Pay down your debt so you are not maxed out. If you can, pay off your debt and save money so that you have cash to get through the lean times.

If you already have more debt than you can handle, make a plan to deal with your debts. Perhaps you can qualify for a debt consolidation loan to reduce the interest you are paying, so you can repay your debts faster. Perhaps a debt management plan through a not for profit credit counsellor is the answer.

If you have the ability to repay some, but not all of your debts, a consumer proposal may be your best option. If that’s not affordable, you may have no choice but to join the hundreds of people each month who file bankruptcy in Windsor.

Strikes happen, and innocent people suffer the financial consequences. There is help available, so consider your options, and feel free to call me in Windsor at 310-PLAN, or email me for more information or to set up a no charge initial consultation.