Is 26.7k a good salary for a single person?

[Bethditto1]

Who lives on their own.. this is in the Civil Service, this is for a person with no children.
Based on 37 hours. I think it's quite poor, just curious to know what people think?

If you’ve gone through agency, are you on a fixed term contract? You should get a permanent role when the term ends, as long as you are good at the job? There is progression available if you are willing to move around to different CS organisations. You say the pension isn’t relevant but trust me it comes around quick and there’s no better pensions out there. My DH has been in the CS since leaving uni and he’s moved organisations, specialised…. They will pay for all of your training and courses. Yes the recruitment can be tricky but you can get a mentor. My DH mentors people all the time, helping with applications etc. The general consensus is you have to be doing above and beyond (ie working at a grade higher) for a while and then go for the roles…. Look at what the EO does and volunteer to do it for them, that creates all the examples you need when it comes to recruitment. Give it a chance because as others say once you get a little higher, the flexi, annual leave, maternity, sick pay etc is all so good.

Well what did you earn previously? How much is your mortgage? What are your expenses?

I don't really understand your question. If you don't think its enough then try and get something else.

Are you classed as agency so are you unable to apply for internal vacancies in promotion? If you are able to apply for internal vacancies then get applying, perfect your applications. Get somebody senior to you to help you with them. You are now able to use AI in Civil Service applications which can help massively in getting the STAR format right and hitting the points. The Civil Service Applications are a skill in themselves but you just need to get the hang of them and there are plenty of vacancies.

It’s minimum wage.

I was earning that as a single person living alone with mortgage when I was 25,
about 23 years ago. It was a decent enough but not a good salary then so I think now it’s very poor.

Depends on where you live and your general outgoings.

In my dept we have a lot of people on this wage and most seem to manage fine but we are in a cheap area of the country. They have regular progression from AO to EO and its sort of expected that you progress. Admittedly EO wage isnt that much more and there isnt much movement from EO to HEO.

Don't expect pay rises, certainly nothing worth noting anyway.

It makes me laugh when people talk about civil service wages as if they are amazing, when as people have pointed out, the lower 2 levels are on/close to minimum wage.

What are your skills?
You don’t get paid by age this isn’t primary school where you go up a class every year just because you got older
Are your skills valued in the marketplace right now?
Can you be replaced by AI?
People need to give a lot of thought to this over the next two years because it’s getting very good in the Testing prototype I’ve seen

My daughter started aged 21 at Higher Executive Officer (HEO) level and lived at home to start. It’s kind of crazy that she had no experience at all and yet just because of her degree, she could skip a few grades. She had to stay home for a year to save to move out.

OP if the figures don’t work, and you won’t be earning more than now, I would reject the offer. You need to live and have some quality of life now.

It’s not great but tbf pension is good. The civil service in general is a nice place to work, they are very hot on micro aggressions which has gotten rid of “the banter” I had to put up with at the LA.

Possibly pick up a weekend / second job if you need the money?

I bet CS jobs will be some of the first to be replaced by ai. Especially lower level call centre roles.

You get a c25% employer pension contribution - think it's an annual thing where every year you get a certain amount of guaranteed pension. I forget the name.

So it's more like 32k. Most salaries in private and definitely third sector - you get a 6% employer pension contribution.

That’s the point that seems to be lost on you though. It wouldn’t be.
It’s a smudge above NMW so no, it’s not a ‘good wage’.

Someone’s outgoings has no bearing on how much their role is worth.

What qualifications do you need for an AO? How much experience for the role?

They are already on it. I’ve bought an AI program that’s cutting out. I would say 90% of my administration work which allows me to concentrate on what brings revenue into the business and double down on that.
The absolute truth is organisations haven’t for a long time cared about customer service what they actually want you to do is put whatever is broken in the bin and go and buy another one.

Or just pay it because if you don’t, they’re gonna threaten to take away your freedom in the case of council /tax.

Nobody is actually benefiting from solving customers problems so they just won’t.

No, I know it isn't a good wage statistically but I mean for certain people it's a lot of disposable income.
If you earn 26.7k and your keep is 200 a month, it'll be plenty to live on. That's why I've got colleagues who can afford multiple holidays a year on it.

I'm not really sure what your point is.

It's an entry level job, with an entry level salary.

Pay isn't linked to your age or your housing situation - it's linked to your skills and the job you actually do. You're doing a low skill entry level job, so obviously that only pays a low salary.

Civil Service does have other benefits, for some people they are happy to sit at a low pay level for those benefits. Clearly you're not.

If you want to earn more money, you need to upskill and go for a higher worth job, either within the Civil Service or outside of it. No-one earns a high salary sitting in an entry level job without going for promotions.

But you're basically whinging that your low skill entry level job pays a low, entry level wage. Of course it does! What else would you expect?

My DD earns around that. With thanks to an inheritance, she has a £50k mortgage. She goes on holiday to the USA every two years, a European holiday every year and a couple of trips in the UK. She has good quality furniture. She lives a better/happier life than posters who say they earn five figures, but seem terrified to buy a new pair of knickers (and have a coffee out while doing so). It all depends on your housing, these days.

Nobody "walked into" a HEO job because they had a degree. You might not have been able to apply for the role without a degree (although I've not seen that very often tbh) but they still had to go through the same process as everyone else.

Are you willing to say what dept the customer contact centre is in. They are each very different and that might influence your decision. However, most call centre jobs are tough.

Are the set hours permanent or just during training or just because you're temporary?

If its a temporary role, I think you are still able to access the internal jobs and in my experience most people are more than happy to support you to get a permanent job/progress as long as you are good at your job and pleasant to work with.

Also, in my dept, most temporary or fixed term roles do become permanent. Obviously there is no guarantee of that.

If you don't have a job right now or are on a lower wage or don't like your current job, I wonder what there is to lose? Its not like you cant keep applying for other jobs.

Also, and this is often just down to luck and I guess dept specific but there are sometimes the opportunities to gain additional qualifications eg I know someone in a different dept who although he has worked there for 10 years is being supported through a paid apprenticeship to get an NVQ (or maybe A Levels? Some sort of recognised qualification anyway).

It's not a good salary, no. But as others have said you will have opportunity for progression and good pension/job security, so possibly worthwhile.

It's not a great salary, no. But your personal circumstances aren't relevant, that isn't how salaries work. If you don't feel like it is worth it, look for a different job. If you haven't got a choice, then too bad.

The CS pension is very good, as are opportunities for promotion. Once you are in, it's almost impossible for them to get rid of you if you are bad; if good, you can promote two stages within 9 months (I've seen it happen). Just do the first 6 months then apply for other roles if you are capable.

No. It's barely NMW.

I’m not sure why you keep asking this. It’s obvious that you don’t think it’s a sufficient/good wage. (it’s not)

You also mentioned younger colleagues on the same wage are paying a few quid keep to their parents and can go on holidays etc. That must be hard to see… but I’m sure you wouldn’t want to be back living at home either :)

I agree with you progression can be hard in the civil service. I’ve been in my role 2 years, interviewed for 3 higher grades since and have missed out each time. As you say it’s not about performance or experience.

Hmrc? The poor wage is balanced out by the great pension tbh.

Yes but as OP said, she’s contract only so doesn’t even get those benefits.

Also, CS pension is not as great as it used to be so worth young people figuring out if they would be better off in the private sector with higher wages/career progression opps for similar sort of job and having a private pension instead.

Like pp have said, it's also a foot in the door for the cs and once you are in, you will have access to internal jobs and promotions.

Most people join as an AO and use it as a stepping stone to get the better jobs and promotions.

The flexi time and wfh is also a huge appeal.

If you can't afford to live on the starting salary then you can't afford to take the job. Most others would see it as a necessary step to bigger things however, they probably don't need the salary as much as you do.

Why not apply through official channels and get the higher entry rates? Now you know how all the behaviours and interviews work, you will be much more knowledgeable and able to complete the interviews, rather than use an agent and get the lower rates with less benefits.