Are youwoth any thing?

[postage]

if some one has worked all there life at 56 they are still earning £16500 is that bad??

[jomifl]

It rather depends on whether you enjoyed your work and what you did with your earnings.

[naomi24]

No, it isn't bad at all. Someone who has worked all his life is to be commended. We can't all be high flyers - and without those who aren't society would be in a sorry state.

[VHG]

My daughter is 26 and spent most of her life in retail (Zara etc). No university degree but she did go to college.

She went to Australia for a year last year and got an office job there, which she really liked.

She came back here in late December, and has been looking for an "office" job since then.

She went for an interview on Tuesday, and they were so impressed they asked her to start today (Thursday) and she is just getting ready to go to work now.

Her starting salary is £20,000

[postage]

GOOD for her i think at 56 and youworked all your life in Admin youmust have huge amount of office skills and know the documetaion and deal with it.

is the case of face fitts then??
or is it the case of age fitts??
surley at 56 youshould be at least £25

[EvianBaby]

I don't think age has anything to do with it. All jobs have a 'value', it's not the person. It's just not in any companies interest to pay someone £25k for basic admin work, however good you may be at it.

[boxtops]

But age isn't related to pay, postage - you can work all your life in a less well paid job, be very good at it, but if there is no way to progress upwards, then the job is paid what the job is worth. It's the job which attracts the salary, not the calibre of the person who's in it.

I know people who are worth a great deal more who have worked in well paid places, but who've lost their jobs in cutbacks and are now earning less than £20K in their fifties. Holding down any job these days is an achievement, irrespective of how much it pays.

[naomi24]

Oh, I see. You're talking about salary rather than climbing the ladder. Yes, someone who's worked in a job to age 56 is worth more than £16,500.

[Old_Geezer]

"Are you worth any thing ?" and ,"If some one has worked all there life at 56 they are still earning £16500 is that bad ?", are different questions and depend on what you mean by them. In a sense we are all human beings and should be considered equal. Also whatever you do is of importance and worth to the rest of us and so you are worth something to society.

Should one still be earning a low wage having worked for years ? That is a personal question only the individual can answer. Would they have been happier striving to do something different ? Or has the office life suited them ?

Should they be paid more doing the same job they've always done simply because they are older and been there a long time ? It's rather questionable. Loyalty is no longer valued in our society, sad though that is. If one can hire an individual off the street to do a job at a certain rate then there is minimal incentive to raise the wage of existing workers in order to keep them. Sure no company wants to go through the expense of hiring and training, but nevertheless it does mean there is a limit of what is considered the rate for the job.

Later years tend to be a time to look back and ask what you have done with your life and why you didn't achieve more. But I'm hoping one lives through that stage and realises that as long as one has what one needs for a reasonable lifestyle, the actual amount is not so important. Contentment is. Being happy with what you can contribute, and also the company of friends. What you earn does not define your life, you make your decisions and hopefully they bring you the best compromise you can get.

[buildersmate]

No Naomi, that is not right. Someone has has spent a life in Admin is probably very good at it, but if that is all they aspire to do, then an organisation is likely to cap the value they place on the job. £25k for admin is well-paid, but it depends what it includes - many PAs to Managing Directors do 'admin' but they earn far more than that - because they act as the senior person's right-hand person and take away much of the lower-level problem solving.

I see this answer got the 'Best Answer' award - which perhaps shows that some people respond positively to he answer they are hoping for, not one based on presentation of data and logic.

[buildersmate]

(Posted before I saw what OG was putting up - award for the Best Answer to him?)

[Zacs-Master]

BM, could you have a look at the 'freezing cold' thread?

[buildersmate]

Done that, Zacs. Will that do for the day?

[postage]

Bb
Your right if someone has spent all their life in Admin and are very good at what they do --- often in an office may be do lot more then average Admin – this should be recognized by the company and they should be given a salary to match the skill.
To be honest most people at 50 have paid off there mortgages’ and are looking towards slowing down – but if you only earn £16 and your pension is based on the final salary you really don’t have very good future to look forward to do you??

[postage]

i guess these days any job is better then no job i would have taken a job that paid 14K even ,,

better to have some money then no money

[naomi24]

Buildersmate, but we’re not talking about £25000 – we’re talking about £16500 – and I imagine that anyone who’s been in an admin job up until age 56 would at least be training any newcomers. I think that’s worth more than £16500.

[pdust]

I agree with naomi... my last job paid more than that and i was just packing in a factory.... ok it was hard work and crap shifts but little responsibility other than lots of H and S and checking quality.

[Toby570]

No, evidently I'm not worth anything now. I was making over £20,000 but I had to work hard for it, physically. After being made redundant and then my accident which has left me demoralized and incapacitated, I find the jobs I could do are not advertised in this country anymore. It seems you have to be Polish to get a job these days.
At my age, I know I'm over the hill and there's no hope of work.
Am I worth anything?......NO

[chelle7272]

Naomi, £16,500 is top scale for basic admin roles where I am. I have an administrator on my staff earning the same at 53. She is top of her pay scale, and it won't get any higher just because she's getting older, the scale is set for the role, not the member of staff.

[EvianBaby]

I do sometimes feel that people forget there is one sole purpose of any business.

Whilst in some cases they may wish to reward a long standing employee, there's nothing that says they actually have to do that. If I'm not happy with the wage I am receiving then I have two choices. Put up and shut up or retrain to do something that will pay me what I feel I'm worth.

[DTCwordfan]

£16500 - a relative fortune here in Cornwall.

What do vicars get as their stipend? Bet it isn't that much more; in part, it can come down to calling and, of course, your own happiness. And worth (to yourself and society at large) is far more than just financial measures.