Savings question exposes young Aussie - as new data reveals how much YOU should be earning: 'How's she so broke?'
The 21-year-old told a street interviewer that she works as a receptionist but hasn't been able to save any money - with 'probably about five dollars' in savings.
'As long as you work, you can kind of maintain, but it's just very expensive at the moment,' she said.
'Not saving earlier would be my biggest regret.'
After watching the video, one viewer asked bluntly, 'How's she so broke?'.
Another viewer responded and explained that receptionists often earn very little at the beginning of their careers.
The woman did not reveal her exact wage, but the average salary for a receptionist is about $65,000 per year.
Australians between 18 and 24 years of age have an average savings balance of $13,069, according to Westpac data from January.
The median balance, however, is just $2,410, meaning the average has likely been skewed by a small percentage of large savings holders.
Money.com.au data showed Australian households were struggling to save much money at all.
The household savings ratio indicated savings had fallen from 24.1 per cent in June 2020 to 0.6 per cent in June 2024.
Adding to the pressure, Daily Mail Australia recently reported that earning $100,000 a year - a salary still out of reach for many young workers such as receptionists - is no longer considered 'good' in the face of rising living costs.
The average, full-time salary stood at $102,742 in November, new Australian Bureau of Statistics data revealed in February.
In the latest data, mining engineers had the highest average, full-time salary of $161,808.
Retail workers typically make $77,802, while hospitality workers are the lowest paid on $74,391.
Average pay levels for full-time workers is now above $100,000 in almost half all of industries, with six figures now typical in eight out of 17 sectors.
Mining ($161,808), telecommunications and media ($130,390), electricity, gas and waste ($122,314), professional, scientific and technical services ($120,630), finance and insurance ($119,090), public administration and safety covering government employees ($107,557), education and training ($107,442) and health and social assistance ($100,890) made the six-figure cut.
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