Americans are pulling money out of their 401(k)s at a worrisome rate, according to Bank of America’s analysis of its 4 million employee retirement savings accounts.

In the second quarter, 15,950 people made a hardship withdrawal from their 401(k), up 36% from a year earlier. Even more disquieting, 75,000 people in 401(k)s administered by BofA had a 401(k) loan at the end of the second quarter, up 2.3% from a year ago.

The amount of money retirement savers are taking out of their 401(k)s is big—an average $5,050 in hardship withdrawals and $8,550 in loans.

Taking such a sizeable chunk of money out of retirement accounts, which average just $82,300, is “pretty troubling,” Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst at LendingTree, tells CNN. “You understand why people do that in the heat of the moment, but the opportunity costs on that are really, really high over time.”

“This year, more employees are understandably prioritizing short-term expenses over long-term saving,” says Lorna Sabbia, head of retirement and personal wealth solutions at Bank of America. “However, it’s critical that employees continue to invest in life’s biggest expense—retirement.”

Analysts expect the July consumer price index (CPI) being released Thursday will be 3.3%, up from June’s 3%. Additionally, United Parcel Service’s Teamsters union just negotiated pay increases for UPS drivers. The United Auto Workers are seeking a 40% pay increase from General Motors over the next four years, and Hollywood actors and writers are currently on strike seeking pay raises of their own.

Amidst inflation that has been elevated for more than two years and a burgeoning wage-price spiral, high interest rates and debt are two other issues American households are grappling with. Since 2019, household debt balances have risen by nearly $3 trillion, according to New York Federal Reserve data.

On Tuesday, the New York Fed reported that U.S. household credit card debt surpassed $1 trillion for the first time ever.

“There’s only so much hard debt that people can handle before delinquencies really spike,” Schulz said. “Ultimately, you just have a lot of people who are doing OK now, but it wouldn’t take a whole lot for them to find themselves in a pretty sticky situation financially, whether that is a medical emergency, job loss, or even just student loan payments restarting.”