Survey: Rising Inflation, Gas Prices Affecting American Workers’ Ability to Cover Other Expenses

Rising inflation and gas prices are having a negative impact on American workers’ ability to cover other expenses, according to a Harris survey.

The survey found that 75 percent of hourly workers reported having challenges in paying their bills due to increased inflation. Moreover, 81 percent said that increased gas prices were hampering their ability to pay for other necessary expenditures.

Hourly workers also reported they were struggling to pay for various expenses: 49 percent said they were experiencing “difficulties” in paying their grocery bills, while 40 percent had difficulties in covering their utility costs. Thirty-four percent of respondents also said it was a challenge to meet their mortgage payments.

Increased inflation is not only hurting hourly workers in their pocketbooks, but in their well-being too, as 77 percent of respondents said that the stress of covering expenses had a “negative impact” on their health.

Per DailyPay, which commissioned the survey:

In order to navigate the rising cost of gas and other financial challenges, 22% of employees surveyed took out a payday loan in 2022. These struggles are further exacerbated by the fact that 35% of all hourly workers report receiving no pay increase over the past year, and this figure increases to 49% for hourly workers with an annual household income of under $50k.

The survey was conducted online by the Harris Poll and was commissioned by Daily Pay and Funding our Future. The survey polled 654 hourly workers between May 24-26 and had a margin of error of +/- 2.4 percent.

As the U.S. grapples with  40-year-high inflation under the Biden administration, an overwhelming majority of Americans (97 percent) say that inflation is either “a crisis or a problem,” while 92 percent of Americans believe gas prices are a “serious” issue.

The American Automobile Association recorded that the national average gas price was $4.908 as of June 25, which is a nearly $2 increase from a year ago.

You can follow Ethan Letkeman on Twitter at @EthanLetkeman.