29.5k earnings who are you and how?!

[AtSea1979]

BBC reports today say the average salary in the UK is £29,500.

I earn 12k but i’m part time (otherwise 18k). I live in the north. I can only dream about earning nearly 30k. I’ve thought about retraining but I wouldn’t know where to start as the job market seems so difficult.

AIBU to think the majority of people earn much less and it’s just the minority fat cats pulled that figure up?

Both DH and I earn well over that. Quite ordinary jobs, I work as a civil servant and he’s a qualified librarian. His job is MA entry. Mine is graduate entry unless you’re an existing civil servant on application.

30 yrs old based in S.E - no degree, Sales Account Manager £36k

No one in our circle earns anything like £29500. We’re in the South West.

Same in my circle, farmer workers, finance managers, factory workers with overtime and teachers earn around 25k. The rest earn a lot less.

Just wanted to point out that there are other places that are expensive besides London; where I live wages are lower than London but cost of housing is pretty high. Average rent is I think £800-900 a month unless you house-share. I used to live in NW and our rent was much lower then.

Fat cats = more tax. So don't begrudge anyone earning more as they pay a huge chunk into the system & that's what you want. More people earning a higher wage paying more tax.

I am an anomaly, I earn 130k with no higher education, I am employed for a big organization. Working in London but commuting (not every day), so live in a cheaper area. I have niche experience, hence my pay scale. I know how lucky I am but I don't particularly enjoy my job but hey ho I enjoy the money.

North west, I work in sales and basic is 30k with ote of around 80k, it's a thriving industry

I earn around 26k doing a skilled trade.
I don't think its unreasonable to say 30k is pretty low for London.
House costs and commuting are most peoples biggest expenses and the poster saying you could buy a house for 50k (ie less than twice the average wage) where they are proves this. A house within commuting distance of London is more likely to be at least 300k (10 x the average wage) and that would be somewhere over an hours commute away so probably add to that 6k for a season ticket....

It’s a bit much to be calling anyone earning that money “fat cats”.

I’m a doctor. I earn a decent wage. I’m not loaded by any stretch, as it pays for a mortgage, two cars etc.

I couldn't live on that! I earn over double that but I work in Finance in London.

I only earn 16k for full time. I work for local Council.
I'm in the North

I am always amazed at these because I don't know anyone on less than £50k a year and we aren't flush or friends with particularly rich people. Majority are on £70k +

No-one in our circle earns that still, we're late thirties early forties. My last office job paid £38k (marketing management) when I was 27. DH hasn't earned below£40k in his industry in the time I've known him, and that low bit was part time.

Neither of us are particularly high powered or unusual in our group.

I wouldn't call someone on £30k a 'fat cat'. Not saying it's not a decent wage.

I must be the only person on here who has no idea how much their friends and family earn!! (I know its more than me, apart from dsis, but couldnt even estimate how much)

Teacher. 40.
H IT. 3 times that

This pisses me off too. I loathe these 'mean figures' and 'averages,' because they are utter bollocks. It suggests everyone is on £30K, when half the people I know are on £15K or less.

It doesn't suggest everyone is on the average. It tells us that most people don't know what the average is.

10 people, one of them is aged 100, 9 of them are aged 16, then their average age is just under 24 and a half. Even thought 9 of the 10 are 7.5 years younger than that.

@momomia, yes you are flush. Sorry, but £50-70k is a lot of money. If you spend most or all of it then that’s your business, but it’s still a lot more than our £18,500 however you look at it. Ultimately it still has to fulfil the same functions: housing, bills, food, transport

In court they presume average weekly income to be 400 Pw. For fines and stuff.

I am always amazed at these because I don't know anyone on less than £50k a year and we aren't flush or friends with particularly rich people. On the other hand, the only people I know who would earn over 50k where I live are my two friends who are doctors, even though all my friends are graduates with around 20 years work experience behind them (I do have a couple of friends who live in London and earn much bigger salaries though).

I worked for a multinational manufacturing company, I was earning c.29k in a specialist engineering role, many years post grad experience, travelling long distances (on my time), with sustained periods of working long days (8 - 7 M-F) in unpleasant environments and responsibility for many projects worth £250k, with a few £500k.
In the same company in a different division, I could’ve earned £27k as a PA in a low risk environment, more sociable hours, less responsibility etc.

So if you’re asking what you need to do to earn that much, it really does depend who you work for, what you do and chance. Had I been an engineer with a different type of specialism, I’d have been earning at least 10k more in another division.

@Skinnychip, I think most people know because if you and your friends all work for the same company then you know the pay scales. It would be impossible not to know what your husband or wife earns if it goes into a joint account.

I am always amazed at these because I don't know anyone on less than £50k a year and we aren't flush or friends with particularly rich people.

Who do think cleans the loos and collects the trolleys.
I mean come on, have a think. I am sure you do know people who earn less than £50k.

No I don't think the majority of people earn much less at all.

Plenty of people must though as full time (42hrs) at minimum wage of £8.21 an hour is £17930, and even then that's only for over 25s as anyone younger can legally be paid less than that.

It’s certainly regional and the term “fat cats” really doesn’t apply in my opinion when people are earning below £300k.

Our grads start on early £30k and middle managers are on £90-100k full time. This is in London. My colleagues all spend £4-6k a year on their train tickets, so it isn’t all win win. A lot of female colleagues don’t come back from maternity leave, as childcare in the area is £2k per month per child (out of a net salary).

I’ve found that you can’t earn a lot of money without pulling in a lot of support at home, so employing a nanny, cleaner, ironing lady, gardener etc. After a hefty tax bill, there’s really not much left