Apparently we now have social immobility - how do you compare to your parents?

[Hulababy]

According to a programme on TV people don't tend to move out of the social classes/salary and occupation levels of their parnts at the moment.

It stated that most 30 somethings are in the same category as their parents were at that age, earning similar salary levels (taking into account inflation).

What do you think? Is this true of MNetters for example.

Definitely not true for us (although am 40-something, not 30-something). Me and DP are way better off than mine or his parents.

My mum worked as a secretary and I remember at the age of 19 when I'd been in work just 3 years, I was already earning what she did.

Yes, both my sister and I are in the same social/professional segment, and that social/professional segment is pretty much equivalent to the one my parents were in at our age.

I think that I bucked the trend. Both parents left school by 14, no qualifications, worked in manual or clerical jobs throughout. I was first in family to stay on to school past 16, and to end up in a profession. But my brother ended up working with my father.

Dh and his sister are of a similar mold to their parents.

FWIW my parents put significant pressure on me to leave school at 16 and get a job. The school put an equal amount of pressure for me to stay, and the main reason I went to university is because on of my teachers personally paid towards my living expenses (my parents refused to sign the grant form).

It is also not true for me or DH BTW. Nor for my siblings. We are all earning more than our parents were at a similar age.

no, but then not yet in 30s.

My parents were both professionals (teacher/accountant) but then we had ds much earlier (21) than my parents had kids (late 20s/early 30s).

More similar to dps parents, but still a gap I think.

meant to say - we are not nearly as well off as they were (my parents)

oddly enough, DP's siblings are all much older than him (14yrs+) and I would say they are all in a similar social and salary category to their parents.

It is not just about what you earn though. How we spend our time, our aspirations, our values, all sorts of things are very very different.

Not true of us either. My parents didn't have much of an education and never earnt as much as DH and I are capable of earning. They were ususual amongst their contemporaries in having their own house though.

DH (an accountant) has been as well educated as his parents but they haven't ever had the material advantages we have (although we aren't that well off) as FIL was first in the army and then a Methodist minister so money wasn't part of what he does. MIL was a teacher.

Not true here on my side, but pretty much spot on on DPs side

My Dad is an engineer so what I earn now (as an administrator) is probably more than he was earning in 1966 . He was paying a mortgage and fuel for work (he had a 80-mile round trip to work) as well. Mind petrol probably cost about 10p for a tank then .

Am 30-something and better off than my parents were / are.

Income - higher, about twice as much.
Education - we both have first degrees. My parents didn't have them.
Employment - I'm same level as my dad, DH similar to his father too. Neither of our mothers worked.
Standard of living - much lower. Smaller house, state school for DCs, both parents having to work.

My parents were both earning way more than me and dh are now or ever will.

But they are both professionals (chartered accountant and OT), dh and I are just graduates

Dh's father was very well off in his 30s - Jags/swimming pool etc - we'll never attain that either.

Similar careers/grades but earning less, I think. Different patterns - my mother had children early and then climbed the career ladder so was doing very nicely by the time she was my age. I had ds in my 30s and have stepped off that ladder - still working but freelance.

My father loved his industry and stayed in the same firm for 30 years, being regularly promoted - something that doesn't happen these days. Dh is in a much more insecure line of work and isn't Mr ambitious anyway.

Big difference is house prices - my parents had a four bedroom detached house in a desirable commuter village by the time they were 26. No chance of that for me and I'm more than 10 years older... and I won't inherit a big house as they frittered it all away getting divorced. I dunno, putting their own sanity ahead of my inheritance, how could they?!

And me and my brother were at private school - something we'll never be able to do for ds/dd/dc3.

I earn far less than my dad; as does dh

however this is not because of our social class it is because we work in the arts

ladymuck is right - it is about our aspiration. My dad's profession, though lucrative, to me is soulless - I think I am more successful in terms of job satisfaction than him, even though I will never retire to a massive pile in a Daily Telegraph reading country village

actually I may never be able to retire

what is also interesting is that my dad's son is in the same profession as him, but he had to get a degree in order to join it, whereas my dad didn't

my dad certainly feels that a degree wouldn't have helped him and that it was just a societal rise in expectations that people need to have degrees now in professions which previously valued hands-on experience

Have less money than they did but have ten times more qualifications

Have managed to stay out of jail though (where they spent time for embezzling said money)

So, all in all, not being a thief/whore/drunk I am doing much better

Me

Income - higher
Education - neither of my parents finshed sixth form education; I have a degree plus teaching qualifications
Employment - My dad was doing manual work in a factory, working his way up; my mum was a SAHM; I am an education advisor/teacher
Standard of living - Higher - we have larger home, ours is own (my parents was council house when my age), we run two cars, have holidays abroad, etc.

DH

Income - much higher and rising greatly
Education - neither his parents went to uni; his dad has police qualifications; DH has a degree and progressional (solicitrs) exams
Employment - DH's dad was a policeman, working up eventually to sargeant; his mum was SAHM; DH is equity partner/solicitor as of April so employment is now way beyond
Standard of living - lower; although PIls were/are very comfortable off we have muchhigher standard of living than they did in their 30s

Pretty similar. Both dh's parents went to uni. Neither of mine did but my father earnt his degree in the RAF.
DH's parents - father lawyer (same as dh) mother teacher (but SAHM for a long time).

My parent's - father engineer in RAF, then oil industry ending up as an international consultant. Mother a SAHM then a diplomatic secretary.

Both myself and dh were privately educated and went to uni. Both professionals (lawyer and dentist, although currently I'm a sahm).

FInancially though I do think we are better off than our parents were at this stage. I think primarily as we both had good incomes for several years before having children whereas our parents had children about 5 years earlier than we did.

I think I am an example of downward mobility and DH is an example of upward mobility so together we average things out.

hmm, we earn quite a lot more than either set of parents ever did, but thanks to insane house prices our standard of housing is far lower. Socially I think we are pretty similar to either set of parents, but in the workplace very different with a lot more autonomy in our working lives.

Quattrocento - why do you consider yourself to be downwardly mobile?