Active discussions

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think it’s crazy that National Minimum wage is £27k

663 replies

Butterflyfluff · 09/10/2026 20:08

Yet it’s not really enough to live on 😢

My first job paid £7.5k per year and I thought I was loaded! And I’m not ancient.

Now 2 people on NMW earn over £50k between them yet it’s really not enough these days.

OP posts:
Constantrunner · 09/10/2026 21:33

Boreded · 09/10/2026 21:29

That’s definitely going to be the way for people in my generation. But my experience has been that pensioners now have really healthy private pensions (unless only one working or previously self employed) and own their own homes. I appreciate that this isn’t the case for all, but for my generation and the one that comes after it, it doesn’t look good for us comparative to pensioners now.

Show quote history

The average private pension for current couples who are pensioners is £500 a month.
People on MN seem to know mainly wealthy people

DonTBeacunt · 09/10/2026 21:33

HardFuckingBird · 09/10/2026 21:07

I recently got a new role, so I now earn £29k a year and DH earns £25k a year, so in fairness we now earn £54k between us. One of our children has significant SEN so we both work part-time to juggle things. We are in an area of the country with quite a low sessional rate for GPs. As I said, we do have some erratic, unreliable self-employed income too, but we cannot rely on it and we don't use it for living expenses - it gets saved if and when it comes in. I fully accept that we are not on the breadline, but we manage to pay all our bills very comfortably on our employed income. I have colleagues who earn far more than us who are feeling stretched, and it's almost always due to lifestyle creep - four foreign holidays a year, a five bedroom detached house, two luxury cars, etc.

Show quote history

i didn’t realise there was a differentiation for GP salaries - learn something every day :)

in Ref to the poster who spends £21.5k Pa - you obviously don’t live in the SE, basic housing cost for the four of us is just under £20k without council tax/ water/energy/childcare/car+fuel/goid, forget holidays and eating out.

But we’d be super rich earning our salaries out of SE, now it’s rob Peter to pay Paul 😢

Boreded · 09/10/2026 21:30

IDontHateRainbows · 09/10/2026 21:21

Inflation is insane. I was on 36k 10 years ago exactly and was feeling very pleased with myself that after several promotions I'm now on £56k only... my BOE inflation calculator tells me this is exactly the same as my ssalary 10 years ago in real terms, despite my role being several rungs above. Actual roles at my preivous level are still paying around mid 30s, so the same, but of course much less due to inflation so more like what 25k or so would have been 10 years ago.

We've all been royally shafted.

This! I doubled my wage with a 2 level promotion, then minimum wage got higher and higher and dragged all of the levels super close again.

Somehow the high rate of tax is only double minimum wage too…how is that healthy for an economy.

Boreded · 09/10/2026 21:29

Constantrunner · 09/10/2026 21:16

My parents paid rent on their council house and never went on holiday. I know a lot of retired people and many have cheap UK holidays but few have any foreign holidays

Show quote history

That’s definitely going to be the way for people in my generation. But my experience has been that pensioners now have really healthy private pensions (unless only one working or previously self employed) and own their own homes. I appreciate that this isn’t the case for all, but for my generation and the one that comes after it, it doesn’t look good for us comparative to pensioners now.

Femalemachinest · 09/10/2026 21:24

intrepidpanda · 09/10/2026 20:39

He is a tradesman
He earns £12, 570

Show quote history

😂 works full time but just happens to earn personal tax allowance. You mean he doesnt declare his earnings correctly?

Apologies, ive read on where someone has pointed out its not you who originally posted about the 20k

IDontHateRainbows · 09/10/2026 21:21

Inflation is insane. I was on 36k 10 years ago exactly and was feeling very pleased with myself that after several promotions I'm now on £56k only... my BOE inflation calculator tells me this is exactly the same as my ssalary 10 years ago in real terms, despite my role being several rungs above. Actual roles at my preivous level are still paying around mid 30s, so the same, but of course much less due to inflation so more like what 25k or so would have been 10 years ago.

We've all been royally shafted.

Mumteedum · 09/10/2026 21:21

I think what's crazy is that there are loads of jobs that demand experience and degrees and perhaps even post grad qualifications and these are not earning that much more than 25k. The margins are small in so many careers.

Mumsnet is usually ridiculous though. Expectations are way in excess of the average salary.

What has happened in the last 30 years is that it's become essential to have two salaries. If you are single, it is very very hard.

Endoadnowarrior · 09/10/2026 21:21

AllIwantForChrismasIsAKitchenAidStandMixer · 09/10/2026 21:05

I fully reject the idea that “full time” is now 40 hours a week - since when? I do 37.5 and DH does 36 and we’re both full time!

Show quote history

I totally agree!
Im saying in order to say a full time job at NMW is 27k, that a 21+ person would need to be working 41 hours a week!
Which is nonsense!

Whilst there is no legal definition of FT in the UK, 35-40 is generally considered to be FT, with 37.5h used as a benchmark in many sectors.
So really a FT minimum wage job is more likely to 25k than 27k!

intrepidpanda · 09/10/2026 21:21

OneNewEagle · 09/10/2026 21:15

Do you not pay a mortgage or rent?

Show quote history

Yes we do. But we're not on 20k a year like the poster in question claimed.

CucumberSummer · 09/10/2026 21:20

Constantrunner · 09/10/2026 21:14

Outside of housing costs we spend £21.5k a year on everything for two adults. That is one foreign holidays a year, meals out and occasional weekend away. I don't know how some people spend so much.

You have your answer there - it's housing costs and children, sadly! We spent exactly the same in the last financial year, and live very well, run two cars, go away etc, but we own our own home, and our children are now adults.

Shinyandnew1 · 09/10/2026 21:19

fedupwithseparatebedrooms · 09/10/2026 21:05

£27k I wish... I'm a TA and my annual salary is £19500

But what are your contracted working hours/weeks? It’s unlikely to be 37/40 hours a week all year round.

bigfacthunter · 09/10/2026 21:17

Food and energy bills are bad but IMO It’s all housing. I’m not far off minimum wage but because I have a £350 mortgage (cheaper part of the country, bought before house prices rocketed) I’ve got plenty spare, paid off car and a couple holidays a year. If I was renting or wasn’t able to buy when I did I’d be paying £1000+ per month and life would be very different. I feel really sorry for everyone getting shafted by housing costs.

XenoBitch · 09/10/2026 21:16

Finta · 09/10/2026 21:15

Then get a job that pays more. Work towards improving your situation.

Show quote history

Oh, here we go 🙄

XenoBitch · 09/10/2026 21:16

AllIwantForChrismasIsAKitchenAidStandMixer · 09/10/2026 21:10

But the £27k is based of working 40 hours. Many offices have decided a standard day is 9-5:30 or even 9-6 in some cases

Show quote history

I guess it depends if you are on salary or wage.

Constantrunner · 09/10/2026 21:16

Boreded · 09/10/2026 21:07

No pensioner I know has less than 3 holidays a year. I don’t know anyone wealthy, it’s just that pensioners have no housing costs, and guaranteed income from the state to top up their private pensions.

Some pensioners might be poor, but not most. They also have no mortgage or rent to pay which right now would be more than half of the minimum wage someone earns (if they’re buying a house now).

Show quote history

My parents paid rent on their council house and never went on holiday. I know a lot of retired people and many have cheap UK holidays but few have any foreign holidays

Finta · 09/10/2026 21:15

AllIwantForChrismasIsAKitchenAidStandMixer · 09/10/2026 21:09

Bit of a bleak existence though isn’t it? Life is also for living

Show quote history

Then get a job that pays more. Work towards improving your situation.

OneNewEagle · 09/10/2026 21:15

intrepidpanda · 09/10/2026 20:39

He is a tradesman
He earns £12, 570

Show quote history

Do you not pay a mortgage or rent?

Constantrunner · 09/10/2026 21:14

Outside of housing costs we spend £21.5k a year on everything for two adults. That is one foreign holidays a year, meals out and occasional weekend away. I don't know how some people spend so much.

Finta · 09/10/2026 21:14

I've thought about UC top ups a lot and I realise it's basically a taxpayer getting their own money back right?

Let's cut the taxes for those on or near NMW!

intrepidpanda · 09/10/2026 21:12

fedupwithseparatebedrooms · 09/10/2026 21:05

£27k I wish... I'm a TA and my annual salary is £19500

Pro rata. How many hours a year do you work?
This is based on an hourly rate. 40hr a week, 52 weeks a year.

AllIwantForChrismasIsAKitchenAidStandMixer · 09/10/2026 21:10

XenoBitch · 09/10/2026 21:08

You are at work for 40 hours though? If you don't get paid for lunch etc, then it is 37.5 hours.

Show quote history

But the £27k is based of working 40 hours. Many offices have decided a standard day is 9-5:30 or even 9-6 in some cases

AllIwantForChrismasIsAKitchenAidStandMixer · 09/10/2026 21:09

Finta · 09/10/2026 21:08

It's fine if you don't have kids. Just rent a one bed and split the bills.

Bit of a bleak existence though isn’t it? Life is also for living

x2boys · 09/10/2026 21:09

Silverbirchleaf · 09/10/2026 21:04

Yes, and not all people live off minimum wage.

Show quote history

Of course but your the one that generalised about pensioners .

DonTBeacunt · 09/10/2026 21:09

When I become a pensioner, I will still have a significant mortgage - so I see a time when pensioners become much much poorer!

XenoBitch · 09/10/2026 21:08

AllIwantForChrismasIsAKitchenAidStandMixer · 09/10/2026 21:05

I fully reject the idea that “full time” is now 40 hours a week - since when? I do 37.5 and DH does 36 and we’re both full time!

Show quote history

You are at work for 40 hours though? If you don't get paid for lunch etc, then it is 37.5 hours.