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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Dd earning £6 an hour cash in hand for a Saturday/holiday job

123 replies

wildfellhall · 02/08/2025 00:03

in a hairdresser just doing very basic things, making drinks, sweeping up, general cleaning and answering the phone.

obviously it’s less than minimum wage but she is learning the basics of work.

Some of my family are a bit disapproving - but I feel as if it’s still good experience particularly as she wants to carry on.

AIBU to let her continue until she finds something better?

OP posts:
PinkCampervan · 02/08/2025 03:00

horseplay12 · 02/08/2025 01:30

Also, if she were on the payroll properly, it would help towards her NIC even if she doesn’t pay NI.

It doesn't. You don't get NI credits for not paying NI. Those years in jobs where you don't earn enough to pay NI don't count towards your contribution record. You also have to work a full year April to April paying NI each week for that year to be a contributory year for state pension NI requirements. Even if she's working full time throughout August and paying NI, it won't make any difference if the rest of the year she's only working weekends.

OP as another poster mentioned, why are you telling relatives about this? If someone is going to get involved in anything remotely dodgy, they'd do well to keep their mouth shut. Perhaps a lesson for DD in keeping her private business private, if you can't be trusted not to gossip to others.

WilfredsPies · 02/08/2025 03:12

I think it’s good that she’s working hard and learning how it feels to earn your own money. Yes, it’s less than minimum wage, but if she’s earning while she’s keeping an eye out for something better paid, then good for her.

And it’s a Saturday job. She’s not handling chemicals or scissors. Is she really going to need insurance to cover her against tripping over a wire from a pair of straighteners?

RosesAndHellebores · 02/08/2025 03:18

I agree with @wilfredspies. She's getting invaluable experience. Whilst £7.55ph would be better, She's getting £6ph more than not doing it, £42 per day that she wouldn't otherwise have. Plus a CV building block and a reference.

springbabydays · 02/08/2025 03:23

Some would do work like this voluntarily just to get experience. I don't see the issue, although I wouldn't be adding the dodgy pay to her CV!!

Monty27 · 02/08/2025 03:25

It's great she's hardworking but it's not a great example having a job and knowing you're being exploited

WilfredsPies · 02/08/2025 03:29

Monty27 · 02/08/2025 03:25

It's great she's hardworking but it's not a great example having a job and knowing you're being exploited

She’s a teenager. All teenagers are exploited in their first jobs. Most of us will have been and I wouldn’t imagine there are many people on here who are still in the same situation. It teaches resilience and knowing that if it gets too much, you can tell a boss to stick their job in their earhole and walk out, safe in the knowledge that you don’t rely on it to pay the bills.

Velmy · 02/08/2025 03:31

It's great that she's willing to take whatever work is available (despite the employer being very naughty) while she looks for something better instead of just sitting on her arse. She probably won't be there long and it's a useful lesson about workers rights.

I skimmed the thread but has she actually asked for NMW? Can't hurt, unless you think they'll get rid of her.

Of course she could take them to a tribunal when she leaves and get the money that's owed to her, and learn another lesson about the UK legal system 😅

The insurance thing is an issue though. If she spills hot tea on a customer, drops something, knocks somebody over etc and causes an injury it could bend up being quiet the problem.

PinkCampervan · 02/08/2025 03:34

My dd was in a similar situation with a cafe job. The boss tried to pay her less than mw, which she refused and reminded him of the actual rate. Which he proceeded to pay her.

Poster, if your DD wants to be on the payroll she needs to ensure that she is. Just because she's being paid min wage doesn't equal being on the payroll. If she is, it'll mean she's accruing holiday entitlement, which she'll have to be paid for if she leaves without having taken it, she'll be able to get SSP if she's ill and off work longer than 3 days, be entitled to maternity pay, employees rights surrounding redundancy, health and safety laws etc. She needs to understand whether she has all that or not and decide whether she's happy with it, not assume she has it just because she's paid min wage.

She has no contract either

Of course she doesn't OP, she doesn't officially work there! There's not going to be a contract, ever. Other than whatever verbal agreement they've come to, that can't be proved to exist and is worthless as a contract. I'm beginning to think you don't understand the situation at all.

These jobs are done on the basis of trust. Employee trusts they'll get paid the agreed amount and employer won't ask any awkward questions about their circumstances or grass them up to anyone. Employer trusts employees will show up as agreed and won't try to sue them for accidents at work or cause them any other kind of trouble. Sometimes it can work out fine on that score. Other times the employer can totally take the piss on all aspects, secure in their suspicion that the employee won't want to rock the boat or risk losing the job by arguing back because they're not in a position to just go get another job.

To whomever said she should get minimum wage at least, in lieu of employees rights - usually those working off the books are doing so because they're upto no good themselves, so it's a mutually beneficial arrangement to both employee and employer. Lots will either have no legal rights to work in the UK so can't get a PAYE job. Or else they're claiming low/no income benefits, so to have an undeclared income below NMW suits them and leaves them better off financially overall than if they got paid NMW but lost the benefits.

There are some industries where the employers prefer off the books employees so they can shirk their legal obligations, including paying a lower wage, and it can result in a situation where nobody can realistically get a legal job in that industry at the lower levels. Which is a situation that unfairly disadvantages honest decent people who aren't doing anything wrong and just want to earn a proper legal living so they can pay their bills. That's my main issue with the existence of these jobs.

Lots of people consider working off the books immoral because even if you're doing nothing wrong, the employer is, and you're part of keeping that system alive and condoning it. So it's not something you go shouting about. For one thing, all it would take is for someone to report your employer - then if they end up closing down, because their business wasn't actually viable if it had to pay proper wages and comply with all laws etc (and now the fines or other legal consequences for not having done so), then you're out of a job. All because you couldn't keep quiet.

NewbieYou · 02/08/2025 03:52

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PeonyBulb · 02/08/2025 04:11

It’s a shit wage

I’d never let my DD be taken advantage of like that

a few of my DD friends had equally shit paid jobs and were expendable and as it turned out not were treated particularly well. Fortunately they all moved on to better weekend / after school jobs

my DD luckily has a decent weekend / after school job

Nestingbirds · 02/08/2025 04:43

She is being exploited op. I would ask her to find a proper job that covers her insurance etc. What does she plan to do in the long term?

LindorDoubleChoc · 02/08/2025 05:47

I would never have allowed my 16 year old to be taken advantage of like this. The whole set up is dodgy and shabby and I would not have wanted her to be part of it.

Bellavida99 · 02/08/2025 05:50

It’s not ideal but it’s so much harder for kids to get weekend jobs now. It took my daughter ages to get a little job to fit around sixth form. So many people now apply for part time shop and restaurant jobs that there always seems to be someone older and experienced who gets the job. I’m not sure why this has changed so much in just a few years. So I assume there would be massive resentment from your daughter if you said she wasn’t allowed to work there as kids want money. I don’t think it’s a big issue really. What’s important to that you talk to her about not putting up with being treated badly like being spoken to rudely or ordered around etc. let her gain the work experience and be proud she’s getting up and going to work in the holidays. I’m saying all this assuming that she’s at college in September. Obviously this isn’t something she should be doing full time. She needs to get a proper apprenticeship if this is a career and she isn’t doing sixth form.

BellissimoGecko · 02/08/2025 05:50

There is no NMW for 16yo; the rate for under 18s is £7.55.

I’d let her stay. It’s good work experience. She can always rethink if she gets offered a better job.

ilovesooty · 02/08/2025 13:26

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I didn't. My first ever job was at Woolworths in the 1970s and it was through the books. I've never worked cash in hand.

Aliksa · 02/08/2025 13:37

I really don’t think it’s a problem.

DollydaydreamTheThird · 02/08/2025 19:10

If she is enjoying it and getting experience I don't think it's a big deal short term. She can carry on looking for something that pays more with a contract etc. I used to get paid £3 an hour in my first job in the late 90s. It was a pittance but it got me some experience and something to put on my CV.

Washingupdone · 02/08/2025 23:37

If she were paid legally it would go towards her pension wouldn’t it? Women suffer from under payments and lesser pensions. It would be good to start on a good footing for a positive future.

NeverDropYourMooncup · 02/08/2025 23:43

She's making more than a lot of Mumsnetters would be prepared to pay a 16 year old to babysit or look after their pets, going by previous threads.

Hopefully she'll be able to get a proper job with training on the back of this experience very soon.

usedtobeaylis · 02/08/2025 23:46

I wouldn't care so much about it being cash in hand, that's typical for teenagers. £6 an hour is a bit stingy though.

XenoBitch · 02/08/2025 23:46

YABU she is being taken advantage of. Cheap labour with none of the benefits of it like sick pay, annual leave etc.
Letting her do this is giving her employer the go ahead to do this with others too.

usedtobeaylis · 02/08/2025 23:50

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My Saturday job from 14 was also cash in hand and then I kept working cash in hand until I was 19 - except I didn't realise it was cash in hand as they had been taking 'NI deductions'. But they weren't paying my NI 💀

4forksache · 02/08/2025 23:51

Ginseng1 · 02/08/2025 01:49

It's great experience for her & super she wants to work and earn. I'd say stay at it but look for something else in the meantime & if she's good & got the experience she probably will soon enough. Why even tell relatives it's cash in hand ?! I'd bet most of us on this forum started off with some sort of cash in hand job doesn't mean to say we are lifers on it!

This

NewbieYou · 02/08/2025 23:54

Washingupdone · 02/08/2025 23:37

If she were paid legally it would go towards her pension wouldn’t it? Women suffer from under payments and lesser pensions. It would be good to start on a good footing for a positive future.

Only if she’s paying NI… and I doubt she’s making £242 a week from her job.

NewbieYou · 02/08/2025 23:54

Washingupdone · 02/08/2025 23:37

If she were paid legally it would go towards her pension wouldn’t it? Women suffer from under payments and lesser pensions. It would be good to start on a good footing for a positive future.

Only if she’s paying NI… and I doubt she’s making £242 a week from her job.

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