That £26.50/hour for weeding is insanity?

[LaBellySausage]

I'm looking for someone to come around for 3 hours/week to help with weeding the garden.

I was given a couple of names of local people who do gardening. I expected to pay somewhere between £10-12/hour, perhaps £15/hour if the person was an experienced gardener. I believe minimum wage is £8something but I don't think people can live on that.

The first person wouldn't give a quote til they came to view the garden and then was hesitant to give an hourly rate, preferring to give a rate for 'the job'. It's not a job that can be finished- it's like when I shave my legs the bastards on the other one have started growing back when I start the second. I just want a few weeds less per week. He eventually said £18/hour. I thanked him for his time but said it was a bit more than I had budgeted. The second guy said £26.50/hour!

This is simple weeding. Trowel and hoe provided. £26.50/hour is about £55,000 annually.

I worked jobs like this while in uni at minimum wage. For reference, we live in a very inexpensive part of the country- he would not be weeding Chelsea Flower Show. Both candidates were local so didn't have more than a 5/10 minute drive.

Am I being unreasonable, or is this a crazy rate?

I wish people would stop saying I wanted to payminimum wage. Minimum wage is £8.72 if you are over 25. I was expecting to pay between £10 and 15 per hour. £10 for someone young with little or no experience, £15 for someone a bit older who has seen a nettle before.

Neither of those are minimum wage.

Round where I live, gardeners are £25 an hour.

I know a not qualified gardener who charges £13-15 per hour. She has work in the winter. I clear mum's garden and there's flowering plants in winter and debris to clear away.

Do you already have a 'day' job though? Because if you do, that's why you can afford to charge less.

@CandyLeBonBon You don't think there are self-employed people who work for a low wage? I can assure you there are many. As a cleaner I worked for min/'living' wage and knew many other cleaners who worked for less. Maybe that's hard to believe for you. There isn't even really a minimum wage for self-employed people I don't think, unfortunately.

@SaltyTootsieToes but do you live in a place with a higher cost of living? I live in the North East

Someone with little or no experience might well not know the difference between a weed and a plant you want to keep, you know.

@SoulofanAggron I'm self employed and have been for 20 years. What's your point?

Yes but I would have £40 spare per visit to just buy a new plant if they dug one up.

I live in the Midlands. I pay £15 an hour for an experienced gardener who has a qualification in horticulture.

I was expecting to pay between £10 and 15 per hour. £10 for someone young with little or no experience, £15 for someone a bit older who has seen a nettle before.

@LaBellySausage Yep, it's more than reasonable. I think £15 would be quite generous, actually. I suppose the better off someone is the more they'd be prepared to pay, depending on what they have to spare. So what relatively well-off people might pay wouldn't apply if I were hiring someone to do a job, for instance. Cos I just don't have the money to shell out as much as some.

I think £10 is reasonable. Or maybe £12.50 as a bit towards any travel.

@FangsForTheMemory

(If I paid £13 rather than £26.50 for 3 hours)

I'm an experienced gardener and charge £20 per hour. I remember taking green waste to the tip and there was a lady next to me emptying her bags of green waste left by her gardener. Each bag she tipped out had various different plants that her 'gardener' had weeded out, rose bushes, perennials. She was pretty upset when she realised what he had done.
I've worked as a professional gardener for 20 years and if you love plants it can be painful to see how they have been butchered by inexperienced gardeners. Think cutting a beautiful Acer with a hedge cutter into a square. I'm worth every penny I charge!

I'm self employed and have been for 20 years. What's your point?

You were saying that self-employed people couldn't work for a low wage. You are wrong. Many of us do, sadly.

@MMAMPWGHAP

Gardening - traditionally a male job.

Cleaning - traditionally a female job

Draw your own conclusions.

Yep. I tend to agree. This is a historic hangover of trends of paying more for traditionally male work rather than traditionally female work.

There are too many industries where this inequality is still at work in the background - look at care role average pay vs trades average pay, where the time taken to train is the same obviously...of course there will be a difference for the plumber/electrician who has taken 3 yrs to qualify.

A gardener does not work a 40 hour week year round. In the depth of winter when the day light is limited, snow or absolutely pissing down with rain, they’re not working. Additionally, if you’re wanting a gardener, you’re paying for their expertise. While you may be providing the trowel, you’ll find they have their own plus loads of tools that they’ve invested in for their business

For all of these reasons, I can understand their hourly fee.

For what you’re looking for, you’d be better off finding someone who is not a gardener, maybe a retired person or student, just looking for some extra money.

@SoulofanAggron thanks

Do you get paid less because you live in the north east @LaBellySausage? Or are you paid the same NHS salary as you would be if you lived in Berkshire?

@VinylDetective I get about £9.50 per hour for being an FY1 doctor in the North East. I would get more in London yes.

@LaBellySausage You could do stuff like tie a ribbon round things/areas you want to keep if possible, to save any issues.

@LaBellySausage

I wish people would stop saying I wanted to payminimum wage. Minimum wage is £8.72 if you are over 25. I was expecting to pay between £10 and 15 per hour. £10 for someone young with little or no experience, £15 for someone a bit older who has seen a nettle before.

Neither of those are minimum wage.

No. That's not minimum wage. However that is quite low for someone who is self employed. I speak as a self employed person who has to show that my business is profitable which means taking costs into consideration. £10 an hour is only £1.18 per hour above minimum wage. That isn't enough to pay a minimum wage plus associated business costs. Because being self employed involves costs that people on paye don't have to consider.

So if I only charge £10 an hour and a self employed person, I might only actually take home £7.50 after necessary costs (that I cannot legally avoid). Why should I earn less than minimum wage?

CandyLeBonBon You have job security, your Ni paid, employment rights, training, equipment, insurances, maternity/smp and taxes taken into account with your employed position. If you are self employed, all of that is factored into your hourly rate which is why it's higher than nmw.

Its a choice though, to work as self employed. I work in a job where a degree is essential and core hours and 5 days per week are required. I'm quite well paid but my hourly rate isn't £26.50 per hour. I'd quite like to work less hours and be self employed for £25 an hour or so, but the work isn't there. I also quite like the idea of charging employers for my travel costs and time to get to work, but thats not the reality of the working world for most people.

I can only think that all these people in semi skilled self employed work must not get that many hours and must rely on someone with an employed wage covering the slack. Outside London and the south east and a few footballers' wives territories, there just aren't enough people stupid willing enough to pay that for a gardener. Different of course if they have a Georgian walled garden with a range of exotic plants. But they will have really skilled, reliable full time gardeners, won't they?

What makes you think a Gardener is any less skilled than a TA?

Well, the second requires qualifications as a essential, with gardeners its optional. And of course, in Britain, the vast majority of gardeners are male, and a lot of people here seem willing to assume that alone entitles them to be vastly remunerated for semi skilled work.

In Berkshire they also get about £9.50 an hour. £11something before tax.

@SoulofanAggron

I'm self employed and have been for 20 years. What's your point?

You were saying that self-employed people couldn't work for a low wage. You are wrong. Many of us do, sadly.

Why do you think you work for a low wage?

Is it because people won't pay what you are worth or because there are lots of people who can do the same job but can charge less because they don't need much money (for whatever reason)

@SoulofanAggron

I'm self employed and have been for 20 years. What's your point?

You were saying that self-employed people couldn't work for a low wage. You are wrong. Many of us do, sadly.

Yes, I know. Which is exactly why the op needs to understand that her expectations are unreasonable.

Well, the second requires qualifications as a essential, with gardeners its optional. And of course, in Britain, the vast majority of gardeners are male, and a lot of people here seem willing to assume that alone entitles them to be vastly remunerated for semi skilled work

So become a gardener then and earn more money?
Or undercut them?

A teenager might happily spare 3 hours for 30 quid.