To think minimum wage is dire. What hourly rate would you work for?

[ColdTantrum]

Been job hunting and shocked at some of the low wages I’ve come across in the UK.

Do you agree the minimum wage is shockingly low?

What’s the lowest hourly rate you would be willing to work for?

I agree OP. I have been job hunting and the wages are dire, especially for the responsibility.
I am not great with hourly rates but my pay band is between 45 and 48k per year, and it feels quite low.

Well that is not exactly minimum wage is it!

Pay has stagnated hugely in my job. I'm salaried now but 20 years ago was earning £16 an hour. This was considered very good money, especially for a single mum who everyone assumed would be low paid. The hourly rate is about £20 I think now, which is no way reflective of how much prices have risen. Back then £7 an hour was considered good locally for factory jobs, it will be relatively a lot more now. My first job back in 1997 was £6k a year 😱

Nearly £12 an hour for unskilled labour is not that bad. Many countries don't pay this for people with little or no experience and little or no qualifications. (And many no qualifications/no experience jobs do pay this 'nearly £12 an hour.')

What jobs are you applying for @ColdTantrum ???

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I don't think the minimum wage is too low but I think too many jobs pay the minimum wage.

Particularly jobs that require training and/or specific qualifications or levels of qualification (e.g. childcare and adult social care) should be well above minimum wage.

Minimum wage should be reserved for entry level, very little training and no qualifications required.

I work for min wage, 40hrs a week
It's low and it's a struggle to afford mortgage and bills by myself some months

I agree with your take on it. I'd actually reduce minimum wage as payable for those just starting low skill jobs, but reclassify what are considered low skilled jobs like caring, hospitality, till operative etc. These are the jobs that seem more in demand by employers at present, and should receive a premium to encourage people to do them.

Minimum wage is too low and anytime it's raised there's always a thread complaining.

Wages in the uk are too low but the British I dunno we except crumbs we should want more for ourselves, it's criminal we think £35k is an excellent salary but anytime doctors, teachers etc get a mediocre pay raise people are frothing to complain.

Low wages also are a reason as to why many can't afford to buy a home. House prices have outpaced wage growth.

GDP per person is awfully low.

What’s the lowest hourly rate you would be willing to work for?

Well that's a bit of an odd question and I'm not sure what useful answers you'll possibly get.

If I was jobhunting now, secure in my existing job and just wanting a change - I wouldn't accept any lower than my existing salary, which is not minimum wage nor close to it.

If I was unexpectedly unemployed and needed work, or wanted a top up evening job with specific hours - I'd take anything I could to get money in quickly and would expect many of those jobs to be at minimum wage.

Increase minimum wage for the hotel dishwasher, means the waitress says well I think I'm worth a bit more than that, as does the barman, the chef, the receptionist, the manager. You just end up with everything going up in price to cover the wage increases.

The housing issue is down to the past 50 years of lack of house building to keep up with demand.

Yeah that’s not minimum wage is it

The housing crisis is multifaceted and has many different reasons but wages are an important thing to consider for both renting and buying.

Minimum wage should allow someone to be able to pay their bills and live in a 1 bed flat not everyone can do high skilled jobs realistically some people will always work a full time job earning min wage and they deserve to live a decent life.

Minimum wage is shite. Especially considering some of the jobs it covers. Caring for the most vulnerable in society for example.

I'm very very lucky that for someone with only decent gcse's and a couple of level 3 NVQ's, I've ended up in a job that's above average UK salary and with a final salary pension, cos I would have been absolutely fucked otherwise.

Minimum wage used to be enough to house yourself, pay bills, and have enough for fun after.
The cost of living crisis has fucked that up.

If the house prices weren’t scandalous then the NMW wouldn’t be as bad. Everyone should be able to afford to pay their rent or mortgage, food and heating and still have some spare.

£16 an hour or just over which is equiv to £32k before tax.

You are correct it is multi faceted. It is relatively recent a single person would expect to run a house or flat on their own. Most would be in flat share, rented rooms etc.

We perhaps need to accept that those of us who are single and on minimum wage may need to adjust our expectations.

I earn NMW in a job that carries responsibilities and affects the profitability of the business - I feel horribly undervalued as well as underpaid. I could return to hospitality with no responsibilities and earn the same if not more, it's demoralising tbh

Is this what you earn?

The only time I've accepted a minimum wage job was when I was able to wfh - years before it became commonplace. I certainly wouldn't commute anywhere for minimum wage.

I was on NMW in 2010, and lived alone in a city centre flat in Bristol (spacious, with a garden). It was affordable then, and I had money left over.
Nowadays, the rent I paid would not even get me a shelf in a fridge in a shared house.

Being able to rent a one bed place if you are single should be the norm. Flat/house sharing, and HMOs should not be considered the norm unless you are a student or working away from home. I know people in their 60s and 70s in HMOs, and that is depressing to me.

I totally agree that some areas the house prices are beyond ridiculous. But if you were to look at 2000/1990 then for the majority of areas, a single person living in a flat or house of their own that wasn't social housing was fairly rare.

A lot of minimum wage jobs are bloody hard work and exhausting too. I hate the narrative you see often on here that rich people are more deserving because they ‘work hard’

i agree that min wage full-time should be enough for someone to live, afford bills and have some left over for enjoyment

You’d lower minimum wage for people starting low skill jobs? Why? How long do you think it’ll take someone to master a low skill job exactly? Please, enlighten me …. I’ll wait.

I think the gap between minimum wage (which has rightly kept going up) and medium wage has massive shrunk.

I used to be paid double minimum wage, now I’m paid 20% more, which given I have 10 years more experience is shockingly poor.

I only stay because it’s good for flexibility and I care about the work, but 2% pay rises have been appalling.