Full time or part time and benefits?

[DancingintheDark17]

I'm currently a working full time single mum, thinking about positively of changing to part time.

I love my work, decent salary, good hours = no paid child care needed, lots of paper work done at home when DS in bed. Being committed 5 days is really taking its toll on priorities, my son and work are always sorted, which leaves me running around with every spare minute trying to clean. Having the extra days at home would creat a perfect balance, but knowing the drop in wages it was only ever a dream.

However my friend recently explained how she's retuning part time after maternity leave, as she will be entitled to x, y, z and when added together is nearly a full time wage.

If I made the change it would permanent, and to move back I would need to reapply.

Any advice? Experience?

I work part time, but have an extraordinarily high income, so I can’t avoid paying huge amounts of tax. But yeah - it’s well worth it! You can’t buy time 👍

I’d never go back to full time work at my primary career - and it hasn’t hurt me one iota. Plenty of massive pay rises and promotions and even a job switch since I did. But it’s a career - if I was doing a job with no prospect of massive income rises, you better believe I’d be doing exactly what you proposed 👍👍👍

You clearly have no work life balance at the moment sandwiched between caring for younger and older generation plus full time job. With everything solely on your shoulders it’s incredibly important you don’t burn out or make yourself ill. Seems sensible to drop to three or four days a week. Workout what you can drop to cover your pension and a small financial cushion. You can always increase your hours when things are easier.

much....lots of people work PT when their kids are small .....can't see what the issue is 🤷‍♀️

There is no issue if between you and your husband you can independently afford for you to work time. A fit healthy working age adult that chooses not to work then expects the state to fund it is dreadful.

Oh I've never heard of that but will definitely read through it.

The government don't tell u what u are entitled to and make it hard for those that require it. I get by just now going at 100 mile an hour but it's not sustainable and I know it will get worst so it interesting to see there are practical options for us

Ridiculous effective marginal tax rates were not her creation.

If the system is set up in this way, you cannot blame people one bit for having a lightbulb moment when they discover how it all really works.

Sorry I'm confused who this reply is aimed towards because it certainly isn't me. Take your time to read the comments, understand the situation and then post your snide comment but without the husband or healthy part

The very best of luck 👍 do plenty of research,, knock up some spreadsheets and you’ll find a way 😁

@Brieandcamembert do you have a problem with pension credit?

A very good point from one of the articles you linked @SwanBuster

"We assume that the wealthy will stop working if taxed at 50 per cent, so why do we expect others to work for much less?"

This is exactly what's happening, we're literally just getting by the now, but I see it getting worst my son starts school, my mum will slowly get worse, and my issue is i dont have enough time to do everything, which is affecting my mental health, so a day or two off would create that time. My bills etc are budgeted to my wage so I would need wrk out what I could afford. However my main reason for post was to seek advise from those who also done this, and was it worth it

Sorry I'm confused who this reply is aimed towards because it certainly isn't me. Take your time to read the comments, understand the situation and then post your snide comment but without the husband or healthy part

It was aimed at the person that said it's normal to work part time. I know you personally don't have a husband but you can work full time.

I'm genuinely sorry things are hard right now.

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I don't think it will be positive for you to do this. It sounds like your friend from other posts was already on a low income. It's easy to top up to low income with benefits. But if you're earning well and I'd assume that's 30k+, topping up to 30k is going to be harder and I don't think you'll get it. You'd be earning less very likely even with benefits, and you'd lose out on a proper pension.

Up to you I guess, if you're stressed it might work out, but you'll be likely working for more of your life than you anticipated, past retirement basically.

Most people who were furlough didn't notice the difference between 80% and 100% wages, but then we were in lockdown for periods during this time (I wasn't furlough btw I worked throughout, didn't even take my holidays!) Anyways, getting one extra day a week can be fairly easy - could you work an extra hour a day? If so you'd just lose 0.5day pay per week but still only work 4 days a week. It seriously can be the diff between being pulled apart and enjoying your life. Losing 0.5 day pay really won't make a big difference to your income and your employer probably won't bat an eyelid! Talk to them.

Ref benefits question as a tax payer paying almost as much in tax as I earn the whole benefits system needs a overhaul. My main issue is life style benefit takers, like your friend - they're the ones tipping the country into shortfall. Why should I - a single parent - fund other people to work part time so they can claim benefits? Work what you can and if you need a top up fine, but don't stack it so you know you'll get a top up.

We all need to be adults in the society for society to work, after all if people like me who work remotely want to, we can all foff to the Bahamas and take our tax with us but where would that leave the UK.

Final point on this. You often get people - including very high earners like me - blithering on about how we pay too much tax (not all, some happily hand over their income for Government vanity projects).

but the dirty secret?

it’s people on the lowest end of the income spectrum who have the highest effective marginal tax rate. Oh and they are also the most affected by inflation in essential goods. It’s Insanity.

So if anyone wants to make their own rational decisions around time vs money, and you want to argue with them, have a think about how the system works in practice and what you would do in their actual position.

I wouldn’t - not if it meant reapplying, not when it seems the only issue is domestic chores.

I’d outsource.

The maths is very individual and can be quite complicated. Earning 30k can be f**k all as far as benefit entertainment goes if you rent and have kids. You can easily be entitled to benefits way higher than that.

giggbig · 24/04/2022 07:43
@Brieandcamembert do you have a problem with pension credit?

If you chose to be on benefits/ low wage/ part time and didn't save for a pension then yes I object. If you did everything in life to work hard, make sensible decisions about what you could afford, save up and pay into a pension and then life sent you a curve ball and circumstances out of your control happened then you shod have enough money to live on.

*benefit entitlement, not entertainment 😂

Yes I make more than 30k but also get a great chunk of that deducted. Moneys not everything when you literally have no time to enjoy it, something need to change so im trying to find best option

Ok - what would you say if the OP continued to work full time, and whacked every penny above minimum wage into their pension?

this would increase their entitlement to benefits in the here and now, and be very financially prudent. They would still be artificially reducing their current income, but at the same time reducing their likelihood of dependency on the state in retirement.

Im interested to know where you think the balancing point is.

Single mum here. Sounds to me like those in their glass houses (avec un homme) have absolutely zero idea about the endless crushing grind being the sole responsible for EVERYTHING.

Interestingly enough, I’ve just run my figures through entitled to as I startled a new ft low-paid wfh job last month. I’ll still be getting nearly as many tax credits now as I did LAST month and the job’s a doddle. I hadn’t done the figures until now expecting a big fat zero…

I have 2 SEN children, am autistic myself, burned out, fed up and don’t give a flying fuck if I need to be careful when I retire.

Time is so valuable.

Honestly, some people have no fucking idea OP.

I am a fit and healthy person but I went down to PT for a year when my DD was at primary school, she had just been diagnosed with epilepsy. I had spent 20yrs paying tax on a FT income and I thought fuck it I am going to prioritise mine and my DC health. Do I have any regrets? No. I have been back at FT work for over a decade.

Being a single parent is hard work, especially when you have a kid with extra needs. I was emotionally and physically exhausted, and I am no use in that state if my DD is having a seizure. I had no external help as my ex died.

It was never a long term solution because I was earning less, however for that period in my life it was necessary.

@Brieandcamembert there will be loads of women who get pension credit because the either chose to stay home with the kids or had little choice. But benefits aren't really assessed on that basis are they?

We are not entitled to any benefits not even child benefit & I work p/t. If my marriage broke down I would claim benefits if entitled without increasing my hours. Why shouldn't I? I've paid enough bloody tax over the years.

Ok - what would you say if the OP continued to work full time, and whacked every penny above minimum wage into their pension?

Or what about people who earn over 100k but whack loads into their pension to get the 30 free hours & tax free childcare?

I worked aswell through it all. Furlough was a joke, they took average of wage during a set time. This did benefit my dad as they to his busiest month and received double his Normal wage but the select few that continued to work, received standard 35 hour week.. how's that fair? They make up own rules and don't actually check it makes sense.

I don't understand how she's doing anything.. she's on maternity leave, and was always returning to work part time, as she will struggle to arrange child care for a full working week, it just so happens by doing this she will be entitled to help.

I've been on both sides of the system, disabled mother and two children living off about £100 every fortnight because, where as now I'm deducted greatly by tax and NI and not one bit of help. So if using the system helps my situation too right I'm going to do it