Did you know… many adults working in our community are not making enough to thrive? In fact they barely get by and are one emergency away from serious financial hardship. That is why United Way of South Wood & Adams Counties has partnered with United Way of Wisconsin and other United Ways across the state to provide the 2018 ALICE Report. ALICE stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained Employed. It is a way of defining our families, neighbors and colleagues (men and women) who work hard, earn above the federal poverty level, but not enough to afford basic household necessities.
According to the 2018 ALICE Report, in Wisconsin, 37.5% of households are identified as ALICE or below, meaning they are not earning enough to cover the basic costs of living which include: housing, childcare, healthcare, transportation, and food. In Wood County, 34% of the population was identified as at or below ALICE household; in Adams County it was 54%.
It’s important to understand our ALICE population because ALICE workers are our “maintainers” who care for the workforce and build and maintain infrastructure. They are our retail employees, food preparation employees, personal care aides, cashiers, waiters/waitresses, and maintenance and repair workers just to name a few.
During the presentation “Understanding Underemployment,” you will learn more about what ALICE looks like here in our community. You are invited to join us at any of these free upcoming presentations:
• October 10, 2018, McMillan Library, 1:00pm – 2:30pm (Providing Wood County statistics)
• October 18, 2018, McMillan Library, 2:00 pm – 3:30pm (Providing Wood County statistics)
• October 23, 2018, Adams-Friendship Schools Admin Building, 10:00am – 11:30am (Providing Adams County statistics)
If interested in attending, please RSVP to United Way of South Wood & Adams Counties Community Impact Director Emily Stieve at 715-421-0390 or emily@uwswac.org.
To download the 2018 ALICE Report, please visit www.uwswac.org/alice. You can also download reports for Adams and Wood County.