Surviving while on Strike

Right now we're barely staying aloft financially from month to month. I'm maxed out with our disposable income and paying the monthly minimums for our credit cards.

Then I find out that we are likely to go on strike in a couple of months.

How am I going to manage this financially? We have a lot of financial commitments and three children in activities. My daughter is in competitive dance and it's the air she breathes... she Loves it.

In the past I would immediately make plans to get another job for the interim. I have some self-employment opportunities I can use to make money. But my certification has lapsed and I'm a bit out of practice. I'd have to do a lot of smoozing really quickly to get some jobs, probably overnight work.

The problem is I'm really tired. Physically, psychically, mentally. I just don't feel like I have the mental or physical energy to twist myself into a pretzel to do what I need to do to make the self-employment stuff work. At the same time, it would be a logical solution. It would require minimal retraining and it's true that I'm good at it, I'm just too hard on myself, I want to do a good job, give people their money's worth, etc.

As an alternative, I am also considering getting some sort of part time job which is absolutely crazy considering my hectic schedule. Kind of like self-harming to add another job. It would be too much. But it would be financially necessary.

I am somewhat upset with myself. I used to be so strong and energetic. I used to be able to handle this. Last time we went on strike I got a job for the interim to keep food on the table and a roof over my head...but that was 10 yrs ago and I was single and childless. Now I'm married with three small children.

Just needed to get this out there and vent. Anybody else gone through a strike and had some insight to share on how to stay financially afloat?

I cannot relate to your situation, Love&Toil, except perhaps to the part about being 10 years older & feeling like you can't do as much. Time certainly does take it's toll on us. And sometimes we don't even realize that it has until we're called upon to do something difficult we haven't had to do in a number of years. Then, suddenly, we're thrown up against the realization of what time has stolen from us. Hopefully some other PC members will be able to address your concerns more directly. I wish you the best as you struggle through this difficult time.

Thank you The Skeezyks for commiserating on how things change over time.

I feel like I could probably do another job if I didn't have all these extra responsibilities weighing on me like driving the kids around to their activities, being a mom 24/7, etc. I am not that old, I am only 39.

I was looking online for part time jobs and there is something that is one weekend a month both Sat and Sun. It's a possibility for a tiny bit of extra income. I was kind of thinking of something anyway for a bit of extra cash flow as we are always pinched tight, being a family of 5.

Dh also is supposed to be getting a raise, this process of reclassifying his job has taken 3 years and is finally supposed to be coming to fruition. He is owed some back pay which he says he hasn't applied for yet. He says he will do so and the funds will come in handy for the strike. Phew.

Read if you want suggestions about making money; ignore if you don't. I admit that I didn't read your entire post because I have a sensitivity disorder and I'm feeling good right now. Anything too sad, and my good energy will be all gone. So please excuse any presumptions. This is based on your title and first paragraph alone.

Ways some people make money without a job/while on strike:

-Marketing surveys/focus groups (You can google search for these group and then google the names of the companies to make sure they are legit, checking the Better Business Bureau website BBB, googling their name with the word, Scam, which generally blows the cover on most true scams, and try calling their number to see if it real. Some marketing surveys will net you over $100 for very little effort. It's good and true.)

-Medical studies (Universities and hospitals often need volunteers to fill out medical surveys, or take part in a medical study that may involve eating a certain diet, drawing blood from you, sleeping in a lab under observation, and/or many other things. Medical studies are very diverse and highly variable. Chances are you qualify for one. Craigslist and google searches can find these.)

-Tutoring, even if you can only do so over the phone or internet. If you have any hobbies or skills that someone might want to learn, put up ads to be a tutor. Criagslist, Wyzant, and a google search can turn up opportunities for this.

-Buying and Selling (Some people have reported success in figuring out what used stuff they can sell to make an okay profit. If you can identify something like that that is also available at Salivation Army or yardsales, you can buy and sell.)

-Signing up for incentives (Businesses, and especially banks, sometimes offer financial incentives for opening new accounts or doing some activity. If you qualify, this can be easy money. Just read all the small print first and be aware that any hard pull credit check or more than about 4 soft credit checks can start to raise a red flag to future creditors. Google this topic if you need more info. about it. There are also websites dedicated to advertising deals like this. I believe that Fat Wallet's finance section is one and there are others that I am less familiar with.)

-Craigslist ETC section has lots of one time and short term jobs, like Uber driving which I've never tried since I can't drive.

-Recycling cans and stocking up on Coke Rewards points. (If legal where you are, you might find recycle bins full of soda cans or bottles. Universities and schools are perfect for this. Ideally go at a low traffic time and put the bottles in a plastic bag like a trash bag and the trash bag into a carry on suitcase. Use plastic gloves or wrap you hands in plastic bags just to make sure you don't touch something that can make you sick, not sure if cold sores are contagious this way. Before recycling, remove caps off Coke products and set them on a table with the promo code side up. Remove your gloves and enter the codes into your computer. Put gloves back on to discard lids and clean table with alcohol or bleach solution. Recycle cans for $. Coke Rewards will only allow you to enter 100 points a week but it adds up and sometimes they have promotions, like 30 points for a $25 gift card.)

-Odd jobs like babysitting, helping people move (if no car, say labor only no truck in ad), mowing lawn, etc. Advertise online in a place like Craigslist. If anyone knows another website similar to Craigslist, please provide it.

-Video watching and odd jobs online (There are websites that will pay almost anyone to watch videos and do odd jobs online. Some pay $ and where it's legal, others pay bitcoin. If bitcoin is legal where you are, you might also be able to buy stuff with bitcoin. You can google which businesses take that currency and there are many. Foodler and Overstock come to mind immediately. Before working with bitcoin, make sure to google about it and ask a forum about any risks. Bitcoin would not be my first choice but it may be much better than starving. Bitcoin is legally awkward, since it's so new, so I would only use it as a last resort.)

Looks like If you continue to work there you should be putting 1/4 of your checks aside in a special fund for instances where your job goes on strike. I worked in a factory where we stoked 2-4 times a year i was putting 150 a check in an envelope and not touching it so I could survive the strikes . As for now cut back to essential spending only buy food and rent and heat. and only fill your cars tank half way weigh cheap gas and only drive if you have to if you can walk walk, or ride a bike if the weather permits. As for your bills you are going to need to figure out what need sot be paid and call your bills and ask what you can minimums on tell them you are on strike make up crazy excuses do what you have to. I had a credit card that put me on financial hardship staus i could not use it but who cares it was maxed out.
Lastly you need to figure out if the strikes in your job are worth the job its self. Sometimes if you are gona be on strike 4 months of the year in a particular job is it really worth working there. You could get a less paying job and still make more annually than if you are on strike all the time . You would have to sit down to figure it out what would be OK to make for you.insurance ect. good luck its all about changing your life style when on strike those who are successful are the ones who win at that game curb your spending to only essentials and drive as minimal as possible when I was on strike I would drive to the bank, I would drive to get food and that was about it. at 225 a gallon if you have a big engine this could be a game changer. What about investments you have you can cash in investments to survive as well just remember you are on hard times only get the money you need . The credit cards will straighten out after you start working agian. ask your self is it worth sticking to this job if its only gona make you broke or if a new job in the long run will work out better for you .

Since you do not know if you will go on strike or not, I would just concentrate on getting your certification/skills in order again, which you might want to do anyway. You can then adjust better as you get more information.

If the strike happens, and your income stream is suddenly interrupted, then I would make phone calls to each of your creditors as each bill comes in the mail. Call each creditor, like the banks that issued you the credit cards and tell them exactly what is happening. The point of doing this is to avoid getting those late fees and jacked up interest rates that will happen, if you are late making payments on your accounts. You might be able to get them to agree to give you an interval of time to get through the strike, during which you won't incur fees. If the first person you talk to can't give you a deal, go higher up the latter. You probably will need to call each creditor on a monthly basis to explain that the strike is still on-going. I'ld be real persistent about trying to negotiate this. Figure out what you can possibly afford to send in by way of monthly payments, and be-hard nosed in your negotiations. They will try to get you to borrow from friends and relatives, even from your church . . . and even from pay-day loan companies. Don't get talked into getting a pay-day type loan. That's just putting yourself deeper into debt.

As you probably realize yourself, you've been living beyond your means, and this could be a useful wake-up call to alert you to the fact that you have been giving yourself no margin for safety in how you allocate your household's monthly income. I'm not sure how the Income Support Division of your local Health and Human Services office handles the plight of people on strike, but look into that. As soon as the strike starts, if that happens, go apply for food stamps and energy assistance (LIHEAP.) You might be disqualified, but check into it, as your eligibility could be affected by different factors in the nature of the strike.

Since the strike isn't set to start for a couple of months, that gives you some time to figure out how you might be able to earn some money. I get the impression that it's your husband who may be going on strike. Remember that, if he is the one on strike, then he can take over some of the stuff you do while he is on strike, like driving the kids around. This would make it easier for you to work.

Start paring down your monthly expenditures now . . . like no eating out, no new clothes, etc.

I hope the strike doesn't materialize. You do well to start planning now for just-in-case.

Thanks for your support folks. Word from the union is the strike may happen in March.

I have realized we need a huge financial overhaul due to accumulated debt and monthly high expenses. We have decent income but high expenses (for example, our daycare fees for 3 children are higher than our mortgage!).

I have been working to reduce our monthly expenditures:

- temporarily stopped investing in my children's RESP's
- lowered my cell phone plan
- made the decision to grow out my hair and stop getting haircuts
- made the decision to take my daughter out of competitive dance next year which will hugely reduce our costs
- got a consolidation loan for debts with a lower interest rate - on the down side the payments are $400/mo. for the next 5 years!!!! OUCH
- realized that I have to say no to a LOT of things such as holidays
- discussed using CASH ONLY to buy groceries for the week... once the money is done, it's done
- I returned an unneeded item at a store and got a refund

Other things on the TO DO list:
- increase deductible to lower car insurance payments
- sell some items (outgrown children's clothes to the used clothing store, certain items on kijiji, certain industry specific resources related to my part-time self-employment which I have decided to give up)

I came home from work today as soon as I got there as I was anxious about money and wanted to go home to deal with it all. I ended up sleeping for 5 hours as I have not been sleeping well the past few nights, awake with the stress of trying to figure out our finances.

Dh, god bless his soul, is not that helpful unfortunately. He keeps promising back pay and a raise at work but this department overhaul has been going on for a couple of years. I can't pay bills on a promise. He just trusts me to figure it all out somehow. That's his contribution to things. It is disappointing, stressful and very isolating to feel that I'm going at this struggle alone.

I took a teeny tiny bit extra on our debt consolidation loan to put aside for the strike, and my parents have offered to give us $1000.00 when we're on strike. God bless them. So that helps.

It's a relief to vent and get this out. Thanks for listening. I am very anxious.

Thank you for your suggestion. My younger, spunky, energetic self would have done just this! But I truly feel burnt out and exhausted, like I don't have it in me anymore. I have thought long and hard and decided to give up my part-time self-employment with erratic hours that stresses my family. I was only doing it in odd spots once or twice a year anyway. I need to focus on regaining my strength now and somehow making do with what we have. I need to make it work because I just don't have the strength to have two jobs at this point in my life. My children need my attention and energy every night with homework, etc.