Low salaries not actually low?

[highchairhell]

I'm probably being unreasonable here but it really frustrates me when people say 'we manage on a salary of £24k' etc but conveniently forget to mention the tax credits, child benefit, subsidised school lunches etc that bumps the salary up considerably.
On threads where someone says they struggle earning £50k there are always posters who are incredulous and outraged that people aren't living like kings on that but fail to realise that there would be little to no help for families on that wage whereas the lower wages are propped up with tax free benefits and housing pay that means they have more disposable income than the on paper huger earners!

The good old race to the bottom, all this talk of social mobility when clearly nothing has changed in many people's attitudes. I'm sure some would love a return to the work houses.

Is it really going over people's heads how ridiculous in-work benefits are? that someone should need their wage subsiding because it isn't enough to provide the basics for? You mean conveniently left out that their employer doesn't pay enough. It's like christmas every day for many big companies, not only do they pay pittance in tax, but they don't need to pay a decent salary either to the people bringing in all their profits, but by all means bitch and moan about who is poor and who is undeserving.

silvercuckoo

They must be few and far between - or you live in a land that fits your name - or they have professions that they can go back to with little difficulty when their kids are past the age when they need full-time care (which even with primary school children would only be in the holidays) - or the fathers of their children are paying maintenance for their kids that the government doesn't know about - or all of the above..

Frankly - I doubt your word (especially about the "several")

Hmmm where has OP gone?

Maybe to research?

There can be a family with one child and a combined household income of 25,000 and they wouldn't qualify for any benefits not even tax credits that you seem to think is handed out whenever.

Where I live a weekly wage of £300 a week before tax is still too high to receive any percentage of housing benefit (which for some people is literally £10 a week) and a wage like that is still only around 15k a year so I'd love to know where you got enough information from to be so judgemental.

It's like christmas every day for many big companies, not only do they pay pittance in tax, but they don't need to pay a decent salary either to the people bringing in all their profits, but by all means bitch and moan about who is poor and who is undeserving.

Exactly!

There's a few posts on here, Hiding where I'd LOVE to know where their figures come from, and if they're correct, I'd be delighted to move to their part of the country, under their councils, and get a low paid, 10-hour a week job in their industry - money for jam, obviously.

Very high-level roles are about socialising to win business or to influence decision-makers. In these interactions people strike up "friendly" lifestyle discussions about cars, where you holiday and where you shop etc. to test you out.

They will notice every detail about what you wear and how comfortable you are in that attire. You will start getting cut out of meetings and social circles if the whole packaging of you does not add up or looks like you're trying to fit-in on the cheap. It's a big red flag and folks will avoid you.

Clients judge the value of your contribution on how highly you value yourself. If it looks like you are not investing very much in your appearance and are cutting corners, then you're not going to get very far.

Which is fine of course - if you're happy to stay at the bottom and run around doing admin tasks for those at the top.

I know 50k a year and still getting housing benefits?! Those pesky scroungers! Wonder where that happens I'll move

Onlyobjecivity, that's complete and utter bollocks. My lack of £1000 suits and ten year old car didn't prevent me from earning damn close to six figures for the last decade of my working life. I was employed for my brain and skills, not my house or car.

Is it really going over people's heads how ridiculous in-work benefits are? that someone should need their wage subsiding because it isn't enough to provide the basics for? You mean conveniently left out that their employer doesn't pay enough. It's like christmas every day for many big companies, not only do they pay pittance in tax, but they don't need to pay a decent salary either to the people bringing in all their profits, but by all means bitch and moan about who is poor and who is undeserving.

I totally agree and assume those who are criticising would be the first to moan if , for example,their child care bill went up significantly so that the staff at nursery could earn a proper living wage instead of NMW!

Not only is it total bollocks, there are also plenty of well paid jobs where people are judged for their brains and skills not pointless fripperies like clothes and cars and don't involve running round, doing admin for judgemental twats.

slummy ive been saying the same on other threads The ones moaning about in work benefits would be the first to moan if childcare fees OR care home fees went up

^Very high-level roles are about socialising to win business or to influence decision-makers. In these interactions people strike up "friendly" lifestyle discussions about cars, where you holiday and where you shop etc. to test you out.

They will notice every detail about what you wear and how comfortable you are in that attire. You will start getting cut out of meetings and social circles if the whole packaging of you does not add up or looks like you're trying to fit-in on the cheap. It's a big red flag and folks will avoid you.

Clients judge the value of your contribution on how highly you value yourself. If it looks like you are not investing very much in your appearance and are cutting corners, then you're not going to get very far.

Which is fine of course - if you're happy to stay at the bottom and run around doing admin tasks for those at the top^

This may be the case in some “high level roles” but absolutely not in any of mine.’I have never run around doing admin tasks for anyone. Yes I have to socialise to get business of course, but I do so on the basis of who I actually am (cheap car, no skiing trips) and have no problems whatsoever getting work. Maybe it would have been different a few decades ago but then I also would never had had my role as a woman a few decades ago anyway.

I’m not fussed that you don’t accept my, or any of the other posters’ experiences as valid, but I do care that someone will read this and think that their background/interests/spending will prevent success and either quit before they even start, or get themselves into massive debt unnecessarily.

Onlyobjecivity, that's complete and utter bollocks. My lack of £1000 suits and ten year old car didn't prevent me from earning damn close to six figures for the last decade of my working life. I was employed for my brain and skills, not my house or car.

BlueLady you are obviously confused. It will be all that admin work you’ve been doing that’s got you muddled.

Clients judge the value of your contribution on how highly you value yourself. If it looks like you are not investing very much in your appearance and are cutting corners, then you're not going to get very far.

Really - I worked with a superb consultant surgeon who dressed like a flood victim. He just wasn't interested din what he wore - if it was clean and had all the buttons, he was quite happy in it.

His wife used to tell me that there ere times she could have wept . . . because everyone thought that SHE should be doing something about his appearance. She was of the opinion that he was a grown mad and as he could dress himself, he could wear what he liked.

it never held him back, professionally.

*a grown MAN - not a grown mad

@SchadenfreudePersonified

I have two colleagues in the team who did exactly that after their relationships broke down. Finance department of a large multinational. Both went into the charity sector to work min amount of hours required for tax credits (still in finance though), at just above min wage.

Primary-aged children still need pre- and after-school care, around 4 hours a day. A childminder (at least locally) is around £6-£7 per hour per child.

Child maintenance is not taken into account for the benefits calculations - it is, technically, money spend on the child by the other parent.
It is not a question of belief, everyone can do calculations.

Oh, of course it will. Thank you for reminding me 😉

@Justanotherlurker

is correct, with the example of a family with 3 children in London it is easy to need housing benefit on 50k income. It is the housing policy that is at fault and while capping housing benefit for those who rent the government put no restrictions on what a private landlord can charge in rent.

Of course this is not the case where rents are lower and a family on 50k would be much better off. Therefore it is the landlords who are profiting from our benefit scheme not the claimants but the headlines don't reflect this.

DH has made well over six figures for well over 10 years with an M&S suit (or chinos and cardi) and a good line in chat about camping in France, cycling and following his Division 1 football team.

It depends on your industry and your clients; boffins working in labs and unis and placing or advising on six or seven figure tech orders don't necessarily warm to sharp suited smooth types.

Bluelady
My lack of £1000 suits and ten year old car didn't prevent me from earning damn close to six figures

Namechangeforthiscancershit
I’m not fussed that you don’t accept my, or any of the other posters’ experiences as valid

I've not said that. Obviously it's not true in all cases. Obvious, yes?

I do care that someone will read this and think that their background/interests/spending will prevent success and either quit before they even start, or get themselves into massive debt unnecessarily.

Credit people with some intelligence FFS. If they don't know what's important and what isn't then they're not going to get far anyway. Clearly it makes little or no difference to success what brand of suit a surgeon wears. It does however make a big difference if you're providing personal investment advice to the elite.

Everyone needs to make balanced decisions when making investments in oneself as a marketable entity, but it will ultimately prove career-limiting not to recognise when and where it is important.

TinklyLittleLaugh

Spot on.

MsHopey

DH earns around £1000 a month. Sometimes a little more, sometimes a little less. We get a whopping £350 universal credit top up as I stay at home with our son.

That is whopping! I hope you weren’t being sarcastic, I couldn’t tell, but that genuinely is a massive contribution to your household income, over a third in universal credit is a significant help indeed.

wow, only just able to check replies now! was expecting one or two, not a hundred!! I'm sorry if my post sounded goady and thank you to everyone who shared their experiences.

I won't say what we earn. We are, however, at the top of the top 1%. DH has to maintain a certain standard of dress for work. As do I but we both blend. I have an 8 year old Ford. There's some claptrap on this thread. Sits in M&S frock.

YANBU OP.

We are one of those "well off" family who struggled, we used to go overdraft most months we are now fine most months since kids are in school. We definitely appear less well off to dc's friends who live in council housing. We have our mortgage. We don't go on holidays, expensive cars and iPhones.