Ontario mom, 51, earning next to nothing worries about basics living expenses, like food

paycheque project

Name, age: Michelle, 51

Annual income: $6,240

Debt: $5,000 on credit card

Savings: $10 in savings account, $1.50 in tax-free savings account

What she does: Part-time caregiver for a senior

Where she lives: Hamilton, Ont.

Top financial concern: “Food. We’ve had to go to food banks to help with the cost.”

Michelle, 51, doesn’t make much money – she only recently started working after decades on the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP).

She earns about $120 a week doing six hours of care work for an older adult, and puts nearly all of it toward paying off her credit card debt, which she has carried in various amounts for years and has struggled to pay off because her income has never covered her basic living expenses.

“I had to use my credit card to be able to