A mom has sparked a debate after she admitted to charging her 18-year-old daughter $90 a month to contribute towards household bills.
Over in the United Kingdom, the cost of living crisis has seen the highest inflation rates since the early 1980s as well as spiraling energy bills which has left a lot of people living paycheck to paycheck in order to cover their expenditures.
As per a study conducted by PWC, 86% of people are "concerned" about day-to-day living costs - and just over half (54%) are saying they are "very concerned."
With this in mind, people have been left with no choice but to count every penny and some have even resorted to finding alternative methods to pay their bills.
Posting to the popular British parenting website, Mumsnet, one concerned mother hiked up her daughter's monthly contribution to the household by almost $30.
Her daughter, who is 18, "lashed out" at the sudden surge despite her earning $1,000 a month working at a supermarket - for which the family gets a discount on their weekly shop.
However, a recent incident saw her "fall out" with her manager and she "quit on the spot."
"So she’s quit her job, she has got a new job lined up - she’s going to work with her boyfriend at a fast food restaurant... and she starts next week," the anonymous mom wrote. "I’ve said to her since bills are going up and I won’t have access to the discount anymore I want her to contribute more - I’m asking for £75 (approx. $90) a month instead of 50."
"I get she needs to save but I feel like what I’m asking isn’t unreasonable," the mom added, explaining that her daughter will still be earning over $625.
"She’s lashed out at me and said that it’s not fair because she’s earning less why should she have to pay more," the mom continued. "And that I’m being mean and horrible basically... She’s saying that I’m penalising her for switching jobs."
She asked the website's users: "Am I being unreasonable?"
Opinions on the issue were divided, with some claiming that charging your kids for rent or bills is "odd."
"I'll never understand parents who make their children pay rent," wrote one user. "Whatever age they are it just seems odd to me. You should never charge your child for something a parent should do for free."
However, others disagreed with the stance and backed the mom, stating that the teenager was acting like a "brat."
"What a brat. I paid £200 ($250) a month nearly 25 years ago."
Another added: "£75 A MONTH!!!!! I would love her to be able to point to anywhere where she would be able to live for £75 a month. Do not back down. She should still be able to save with that amount."
A third even offered the mom some helpful advice: "Perhaps offer her to sit down with the bills herself and work out what a fair contribution would be. I expect it will come to much more than £75 a month and she will quickly realize that."
What do you think?
