John Oliver is amazing and it is the reason why HBO hasn’t canned him, despite the fact he stirs up a lot of legal drama. He does to a lot of great public service segments and most are well worth watching. Here is a show he recently did on pig butchering scams:

Now, this is an important PSA for everyone because I think that a> yes, we – and by “we” I mean “everybody,” including me – are prone to getting scammed; b> we have no idea how far the rabbit hole goes with organized crime getting in on it; and c> how important it is to come forward and tell people about how easy it is to get scammed. It’s incredibly embarrassing to admit that it has happened to you but it is so important to let others know. Forewarned is forearmed, after all!

But I think what struck me in the comments section were people who said, “Can you imagine having enough money in the first place that you could lose $350,000!” followed by, “Interesting to see this comment!! I was like “wow, I can barely afford my rent, no savings for a rainy day and they’re losing more money than I can save in 4 lifetimes!!”

I automatically juxtaposed these comments to the hysterical headlines of “CANADIANS BELIEVE THAT YOU NEED OVER ONE MILLION DOLLARS TO RETIRE*” that has plagued Canadian media in the past year. This lead to a bunch of rebuttals including from one of Canada’s most adorable couples who retired early(ish) with “only” $300 000 in the bank.

The reality is that even though people are supposed to save for retirement, most of them don’t. Many people just live on the average amount of government benefits. So I thought it would be interesting if I calculated it up for a person who made minimum wage their entire lives but who worked until they were 65. This is both for the Canada Pension Plan (which we pay into) and Old Age Security (which is welfare for old people**).

They would get a total of $17658/pa or $1471.50 a month.

Since that number is under the $21624/pa cutoff for a single person for the Guaranteed Income Supplement, a single person working a minimum wage job could get up to $1065.47 on top of that CPP/OAS amount, bringing the grand total to $2536.97 a month or 30443.64/pa. It’s not a lavish lifestyle but it is definitely manageable, especially if you have some paid off real estate, social or co-op housing, live in a low-COLA area or have a bunch of roommates.

If you somehow also managed to save in a TFSA – let’s say, $100 000 total over your lifetime – you could probably also take out 4% tax free during your retirement that would also give you an extra $4000 a year that wouldn’t affect your benefits at all. Again, not a high-on-the-hog lifestyle but manageable.

OH? You don’t think someone who makes minimum wage could save $100000 over 30 years? I mean maybe not…but also it would only mean saving $1380 OR $115 a month in a TFSA at a 5% interest rate, which is not out of the realm of possibility, either.

We all know that this is over a long time span and programs come/go/and get cut by governments all of the time & the future is unknowable. While we tend towards the catastrophic, things can also get better if you are a good saver and/or make more money over your lifetime. They can also get worse if, say, you were a stay-at-home spouse with someone who died and left you nothing***. I think focusing on what you can control, today, is better than letting the panic freeze you into inaction or living your life in fear.

Naturally, this is all just a thought experiment. I am sure you could nitpick this example to death**** but it is an example of one particular scenario out of many and it’s just to show people that all is not lost if you don’t have a million dollars in the bank. I feel that it is counterproductive to push the ZOMG IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A MILLION DOLLARS YOU WILL HAVE TO EAT CAT FOOD narrative in a province where we seem to be ok with Welfare being $733 and Disability (ODSP) just $1308 a month.

Don’t let the bastards get you down.

*Depending on your demographic, according to this BMO survey.
**This is exactly what OAS and GIS are as it comes out of the current federal budget. If you want to watch your old, curmudgeonly uncle lose his goddamn mind at Thanksgiving, tell him that he is actually on welfare and stand back and watch the sparks fly!
***HASHTAG TRADWIFE.
****I put in 1975 as the birth year but the TFSA has only been around since 2009, par example.