Rising costs and tight budgets strain Americans ahead of midterm elections

Rising costs leave US workers juggling multiple jobs as financial security becomes increasingly elusive.

Wage growth has not kept up with the rate of inflation [File:Nam Y Huh/AP]

Stacy Eichel, an empty nester in Florida, spent years balancing two jobs. One was in healthcare; the other was her own venture: a small business making custom-branded merchandise for corporate clients, such as coffee mugs and T-shirts that companies hand out at conferences and holiday parties.

For Eichel, the business was more than a paycheque. It was a side hustle for a woman who couldn’t sit still, who was always hungry for the next opportunity. It was the kind of business that thrived when companies had a little extra to spend on small branded trinkets to make an otherwise mundane corporate conference something memorable.

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In September 2025, Eichel lost her job in marketing for a healthcare company after a merger. Suddenly, the business she had run on the side had to shoulder more of the burden of supporting her. Yet just as she needed it to provide more, the market for her products was shrinking.

Faced with uncertainty over trade policy and tariffs, alongside the growing use of artificial intelligence across the economy, companies have been tightening their spending. Custom-branded merchandise was becoming one more expense they could do without.

“The economy is such that fewer people are buying custom-branded swag because it’s more of a luxury item. When they have extra money in the budget, that’s what they’ll use it for, but now their budgets are very tight,” Eichel, who has cut back on her expenses, told Al Jazeera.

Eichel’s experience reflects a broader strain in the US labour market, where a paycheque does not necessarily translate into financial security. The headline unemployment rate captures people actively looking for work, but it does not tell the whole story of people who are working fewer hours than they want or juggling jobs that do not provide enough income.

The Department of Labor documents this through what is called the U-6 rate, a broader measure of unemployment and underemployment. It stands at an elevated 7.6 percent. While that’s down from 8.1 percent a year ago, having a job does not necessarily mean Americans are getting ahead financially.

The U-6 measure includes people who are working part-time because they cannot find full-time jobs, as well as those who want to work but have stopped looking for a job recently.

Even people who are employed full-time are finding that their earnings do not stretch as far as they once did. An estimated 4.5 million Americans were working part-time because they could not find full-time work. Meanwhile, nine million Americans held multiple jobs, accounting for 5.5 percent of all employed workers, according to the most recent jobs report.

“Underemployment is one of the most misunderstood economic problems in America because it doesn’t always look like unemployment. It looks like a college graduate working retail despite having a degree, a former executive accepting a position paying half their previous salary, or a parent working two jobs because neither provides enough hours, benefits or income to support their family,” Tara Furiani, a workforce strategist based in Richmond, Virginia, told Al Jazeera.

Average hourly wages rose 3 percent over the past year, while consumer prices increased 3.7 percent, according to the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released by the US Labor Department.

That means prices have risen faster than wages, leaving many workers with less purchasing power. Overall, prices rose 0.6 percent from the previous month, while average hourly wages increased by just 0.1 percent, adding to the financial pressure on households like Eichel’s.

Eichel has cut back on expenses and scaled down some of her usual spending, including dining out and takeout, and dropped her cable service.

“I never used to think before ordering in, and now we cook everything,” Eichel said.

With the midterm elections approaching, the cost of living is becoming a greater concern for voters. A Reuters/Ipsos poll found that the cost of living was the most important issue for voters, leading the next-closest issue by a double-digit margin, at 47 percent compared with 22 percent for “democratic norms and values”.

A separate Washington Post–ABC News–Ipsos poll found that voters trust Democrats over Republicans to handle the economy, 40 percent to 33 percent, marking the first time in 12 years that Democrats have held an advantage on the issue.

This comes as 44 percent of Americans said they had struggled to pay for at least one basic necessity over the past year, including transportation, rent or mortgage payments, medical care and food, according to a Pew Research Center poll released earlier this month.

Twenty percent of respondents said they had received food from a food bank or pantry over the past year.

Joshua Teicher, a New York City-based video producer in the advertising industry, said work began drying up after the COVID-19 pandemic, with opportunities dwindling further in recent years as companies tightened their budgets. Even the slow trickle of work has nearly dried up entirely.

Teicher told Al Jazeera that his financial circumstances have changed so significantly that he is now on Medicaid, government-subsidised healthcare for people in lower-income brackets. He said he is struggling to afford prescriptions and food.

“I’m having to go into my savings. Specifically, sometimes I don’t want to get a second cup of coffee because it’s like five bucks for an espresso or something like that. It’s also been harder to eat healthy. Grocery shopping, apples are just ridiculous. I find myself walking a couple of extra blocks to a cheaper store because they have cheaper apples, those sorts of things,” Teicher said.

He told Al Jazeera that his tight budget also prevents him from affording the knee surgery he needs. Cartilage in both knees has worn down. He was able to undergo surgery on his right knee to correct the problem, but cannot afford the same procedure on his left. As a result, one leg is now slightly longer than the other.

Petrol prices are another expense weighing on consumers. The average price for a gallon of gasoline (3.78 litres) on Monday was $4.29, according to the American Automobile Association (AAA), which tracks fuel prices daily. By comparison, the average price was $2.98 when the US and Israel first struck Iran in late February, leading to ongoing disruptions in the global market.

Even for Americans who have jobs, finding a better-paying position can be difficult. Although some industries have continued to add jobs, uncertainty about economic policy has contributed to what economists call a “low-hire, low-fire” labour market.

Employers are pulling back on hiring even as layoffs remain relatively low. The latest Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that job openings and the number of workers quitting their jobs were largely unchanged.

“I have seen highly qualified people who have not been able to find a job for 12-18 months,” Babak Hafezi, a professor of international business at American University, told Al Jazeera.

With fewer opportunities available, workers who already have jobs may be reluctant to leave them, even if they are unhappy or want higher pay. Those looking for work face more competition for available positions, while people who are already employed may have less leverage to negotiate better salaries. That can make it harder for workers to improve their financial situations as everyday expenses continue to rise. This is leading some people who already work full-time to add on part-time jobs.

“We have people come in all the time who are teachers looking for a part-time job, or who are in other fields asking, ‘Do you know anyone hiring part-time? I just need 15–20 hours a week to make ends meet.’ At what point does this end?” Debbie Louis, who owns a coffee shop in Brooklyn, New York, told Al Jazeera.

Although industries such as hospitality and healthcare have added jobs over the last year, Hafezi said that growth could slow or reverse over the next year. He pointed to the potential impact of the Big Beautiful tax legislation, which could reduce funding for programmes that support rural hospitals , as well as immigration policies that have discouraged international travel to the US over the past year, hitting businesses that benefit from those revenues.

At the same time, US consumers are also dealing with the reality of reduced purchasing power.

“Tariffs and economic pressures from high inflation are affecting Americans’ purchasing power. As prices increase, unit consumption decreases [they buy less as] their paycheques don’t go as far,” Hafezi said.

“This ultimately leads Americans to feel poorer and less able to consume. That is the environment that many Americans in the ‘K-shaped’ economy are in.”

In a so-called K-shaped economy, wealthier US consumers continue to prosper while lower- and middle-income households fall behind. The Conference Board’s most recent consumer confidence report found that higher-income households, often supported by investment gains and greater financial reserves, are more optimistic than those in other income brackets.

“Ahead of the midterms, policymakers and employers should be examining not simply how many Americans are working, but whether available employment provides adequate wages, sufficient hours, predictable schedules, benefits and genuine opportunities for advancement. Because a paycheque and economic security are, again, not the same thing,” Furiani, the workforce strategist, added.

生活成本不断上涨，导致美国工人不得不身兼数职，经济保障变得越来越难以实现。

工资增长速度跟不上通货膨胀率。[图片来源：Nam Y Huh/AP]

斯泰西·艾歇尔 (Stacy Eichel) 是佛罗里达州的一位空巢老人，她多年来一直兼顾两份工作。一份是医疗保健行业的工作；另一份是她自己的创业项目：一家为企业客户制作定制品牌商品的小公司，例如公司在会议和节日派对上分发的咖啡杯和 T 恤衫。

对艾歇尔来说，这份生意不仅仅是挣钱养家。对于一个闲不住、总是渴望下一个机会的女人来说，这更像是一份副业。当公司愿意花点钱购买一些印有公司标志的小玩意儿，让原本平淡无奇的企业会议变得令人难忘时，这种生意就蓬勃发展起来。

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美国新增就业岗位仅2.9万个，中期选举前失业率上升，排名第三。

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2025年9月，艾歇尔在一家医疗保健公司合并后失去了市场营销工作。突然间，她一直兼职经营的小生意不得不承担起更多维持生计的重担。然而，正当她需要更多资金来维持生计时，她的产品市场却在萎缩。

面对贸易政策和关税的不确定性，以及人工智能在经济领域日益广泛的应用，企业一直在收紧开支。定制品牌商品也逐渐成为他们可以削减的又一项支出。

“现在的经济形势是，购买定制品牌周边产品的人越来越少，因为这更像是一种奢侈品。如果预算里有多余的钱，他们就会买这种东西，但现在他们的预算非常紧张，”艾歇尔告诉半岛电视台，她自己也已经削减了开支。

艾歇尔的经历反映了美国劳动力市场更广泛的困境，即一份薪水并不一定能转化为经济保障。官方公布的失业率反映了积极寻找工作的人数，但它并不能完全反映那些工作时间少于预期或身兼数职收入不足的人们的真实情况。

美国劳工部通过U-6失业率来记录这一情况，U-6失业率是衡量失业和就业不足情况的更广泛指标。目前该指标高达7.6%。虽然低于一年前的8.1%，但有工作并不一定意味着美国人的经济状况就会好转。

U-6 指标包括因找不到全职工作而从事兼职工作的人，以及想工作但最近停止寻找工作的人。

即使是全职员工也发现，他们的收入不如以前那么经用了。据估计，约有450万美国人因为找不到全职工作而从事兼职。与此同时，根据最新的就业报告，有900万美国人身兼数职，占所有就业人员的5.5%。

“就业不足是美国最容易被误解的经济问题之一，因为它并不总是表现为失业。它可能表现为大学毕业生明明拥有学位却只能在零售业工作，前高管接受了一份薪水只有之前一半的工作，或者父母为了养家糊口而不得不打两份工，因为这两份工作都无法提供足够的工时、福利或收入，”弗吉尼亚州里士满的劳动力战略专家塔拉·富里亚尼告诉半岛电视台。

根据美国劳工部发布的最新消费者价格指数（CPI）报告，过去一年平均小时工资上涨了3%，而消费者价格上涨了3.7%。

这意味着物价上涨速度超过了工资上涨速度，导致许多工人的购买力下降。总体而言，物价较上月上涨了0.6%，而平均时薪仅上涨了0.1%，这加剧了像艾歇尔一家这样的家庭的经济压力。

艾歇尔减少了开支，缩减了一些日常消费，包括外出就餐和外卖，并且取消了有线电视服务。

“我以前点外卖从来不考虑后果，现在我们自己做饭，”艾歇尔说。

随着中期选举临近，生活成本问题日益受到选民关注。路透社/益普索的一项民调显示，生活成本是选民最关心的问题，其支持率高达47%，远超排名第二的“民主规范和价值观”（支持率仅为22%）。

另一项由《华盛顿邮报》、ABC新闻和益普索联合进行的民意调查发现，选民更信任民主党人而非共和党人来处理经济问题，支持率分别为40%和33%，这是12年来民主党人首次在该问题上占据优势。

皮尤研究中心本月早些时候发布的一项民意调查显示，44%的美国人表示，在过去一年中，他们至少难以支付一项基本必需品，包括交通、房租或抵押贷款、医疗保健和食品。

20%的受访者表示，他们在过去一年中曾从食品银行或食品救济站领取过食物。

约书亚·泰彻是一位在纽约市从事广告行业的视频制作人，他表示，新冠疫情爆发后，工作机会就开始减少，近年来随着企业预算紧缩，机会更是进一步减少。就连原本就寥寥无几的工作也几乎完全消失了。

泰彻告诉半岛电视台，他的经济状况发生了巨大变化，现在他只能依靠医疗补助计划（Medicaid）——一项政府补贴的、面向低收入人群的医疗保健服务。他说，他现在连处方药和食物都难以负担。

“我不得不动用积蓄。具体来说，有时候我不想再买第二杯咖啡，因为一杯浓缩咖啡就要五美元左右。健康饮食也变得更难了。买菜的时候，苹果的价格简直离谱。我发现自己不得不多走几个街区去一家更便宜的商店，因为那里的苹果更便宜，诸如此类的事情，”泰彻说道。

他告诉半岛电视台，由于预算紧张，他无力承担所需的膝盖手术费用。他的双膝软骨都已磨损。他之前接受了右膝手术来矫正这个问题，但无力承担左膝的手术费用。结果，他的一条腿现在比另一条腿略长。

汽油价格是消费者面临的另一项沉重负担。据美国汽车协会（AAA）统计，周一每加仑汽油（3.78升）的平均价格为4.29美元。该协会每日追踪燃油价格。相比之下，2月底美国和以色列首次袭击伊朗时，平均价格为每加仑2.98美元，那次袭击导致全球市场持续动荡。

即使对于有工作的美国人来说，找到一份薪水更高的工作也并非易事。尽管一些行业仍在持续增加就业岗位，但经济政策的不确定性导致了经济学家所说的“低招聘、低解雇”的劳动力市场局面。

尽管裁员人数仍然相对较低，但雇主们正在缩减招聘规模。美国劳工统计局最新发布的职位空缺和劳动力流动调查（JOLTS）显示，职位空缺数量和离职员工人数基本保持不变。

“我见过一些资质很高的人，他们12到18个月都找不到工作，”美国大学国际商务教授巴巴克·哈菲兹告诉半岛电视台。

由于就业机会减少，即使对工作不满意或希望获得更高薪酬，现有员工也可能不愿离职。求职者面临着更激烈的职位竞争，而已就业者在薪资谈判中可能缺乏优势。随着日常开支的不断上涨，这使得员工改善财务状况更加困难。因此，一些全职员工不得不兼职。

“我们经常遇到一些老师来找兼职工作，或者其他领域的从业者问：‘你们认识哪里招兼职的吗？我每周只需要15到20个小时就能维持生计。’这种情况什么时候才能结束？”纽约布鲁克林一家咖啡店的老板黛比·路易斯告诉半岛电视台。

尽管过去一年酒店和医疗保健等行业新增了就业岗位，但哈菲兹表示，未来一年增长速度可能会放缓甚至逆转。他指出，大美税收法案可能会减少对支持农村医院项目的资金投入，而过去一年来抑制国际游客赴美旅行的移民政策也会对依赖这些收入的企业造成冲击。

与此同时，美国消费者也面临着购买力下降的现实。

哈菲兹说：“关税和高通胀带来的经济压力正在影响美国人的购买力。随着物价上涨，单位消费量下降，他们的工资购买力下降，所以他们买得更少了。”

“这最终会导致美国人感到更穷，消费能力下降。这就是许多处于‘K型’经济环境下的美国人所面临的困境。”

在所谓的“K型经济”中，美国富裕消费者持续受益，而中低收入家庭则步履维艰。世界大型企业联合会最新发布的消费者信心报告显示，高收入家庭往往受益于投资收益和更充裕的财务储备，因此比其他收入阶层的家庭更为乐观。

“在中期选举前，政策制定者和雇主不仅应该关注有多少美国人就业，还应该关注现有就业机会是否能提供足够的工资、充足的工时、可预测的工作安排、福利以及真正的晋升机会。因为薪水和经济保障，再次强调，并非一回事，”劳动力战略专家富里亚尼补充道。