billybong Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 (edited) Don't forget waiters' tips That might account for part of it. In 1975 a waiter would typically work in a restaurant and a lot of them got decent tips. Zero tipping Macjobs had hardly started then. Edited February 12, 2012 by billybong Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R.Evans Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 His wording may be clouded but cost of living over the last ten years seems to be higher relative to income. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10510360 links to Joseph Rowntree Foundation report So if that tracks back another 30 years then it could be true. Either way you look at it, with cost of living growing faster than inflation and income adjustments, then many will be worse off but perhaps oblivious or confused as to why. Retail Prices Index. All items. December 1974 ~ 19.1 December 2011 ~ 239.4 +1,153.4% Average earning index (periods after July 2010 constructed from average weekly earnings) Deceber 1974 ~ 12.6 July 2010 ~ 141.0 November 2011 ~ 145.1 +1,051.6% While this suggests some erosion of real earnings over the period it ignores the benefit of lower direct taxation (and also, by the way, of 'in work benefits' such as tax credits that were not available in 1974) 1974/1975 Income tax basic rate ~ 33% (up to £4,500) National Insurance Class 1 employees contribution rate ~ 5.5% 2011/12 Income tax basic rate ~ 20% (up to £35,000) National Insurance Class 1 employees contribution rate (contracted in) ~ 12% Net average weekly earnings for a single (non aged) employed person (not contracted out) were therefore £360.95 at the end of 2011 compared to £29.35 at the end of 1974 (I've used National Insurance contribution rates from April 1975 as the present system started in that month and the previous flat rate plus graded rate system was more complex - the calculated weekly contribution is £1.61). Average weekly net earnings therefore increased by by 1,126.6% compared to the increase of 1,153.4% in the RPI over the same period. This demonstrates that average net earnings have broadly matched general inflation over the period in question. To have the equivalent of end 1974 net average weekly earnings a single employed person requires £367.87, just £6.92 (1.88%) less than current average net earnings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Loo Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 So the difference between that and real-life living costs was your BoMD. I was only 18! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Isakndar Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 nice, 20 so my £1000 pa job in the civil service would have to pay £20K now. the beer and the fares are the same....Mum Gets £100..... What is an 18 year old now being paid to work as a CO in civil service in central London? When I started work in 1987 in central London for the BBC ( Boo hiss I hear), the pays scale were closely matched to the civil service. I was getting about 12K, without mum to live with. These jobs in broadcasting do not really exist now. A trainee engineer might expect to get somewhere between 16K and 22K, for others skill sets you are lucky to get paid at all for the first couple of years it seems. Wages have definately not kept up with inflation in Broadcasting IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aa3 Posted February 13, 2012 Author Share Posted February 13, 2012 Retail Prices Index. All items. December 1974 ~ 19.1 December 2011 ~ 239.4 +1,153.4% Average earning index (periods after July 2010 constructed from average weekly earnings) Deceber 1974 ~ 12.6 July 2010 ~ 141.0 November 2011 ~ 145.1 +1,051.6% While this suggests some erosion of real earnings over the period it ignores the benefit of lower direct taxation (and also, by the way, of 'in work benefits' such as tax credits that were not available in 1974) 1974/1975 Income tax basic rate ~ 33% (up to £4,500) National Insurance Class 1 employees contribution rate ~ 5.5% 2011/12 Income tax basic rate ~ 20% (up to £35,000) National Insurance Class 1 employees contribution rate (contracted in) ~ 12% Net average weekly earnings for a single (non aged) employed person (not contracted out) were therefore £360.95 at the end of 2011 compared to £29.35 at the end of 1974 (I've used National Insurance contribution rates from April 1975 as the present system started in that month and the previous flat rate plus graded rate system was more complex - the calculated weekly contribution is £1.61). Average weekly net earnings therefore increased by by 1,126.6% compared to the increase of 1,153.4% in the RPI over the same period. This demonstrates that average net earnings have broadly matched general inflation over the period in question. To have the equivalent of end 1974 net average weekly earnings a single employed person requires £367.87, just £6.92 (1.88%) less than current average net earnings. Thanks for the statistics. A couple points I will raise to question them. First off they migth be complete fabrications, some 'revisitionist' history going on by the government. To fiddle with the statistics enough so that in 35 years of technological progress we manage to have the same average earnings as 35 years ago. Instead of showing declining standard of living. Secondly if it is an average not a median, there could be a greater concentration of income today than 35 years ago. Like one banker making 10 million pounds a year, and a bunch of people just surviving and it looks like we are keeping the same standard of living. While for that bunch of people there has been a clear decline. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Loo Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 When I started work in 1987 in central London for the BBC ( Boo hiss I hear), the pays scale were closely matched to the civil service. I was getting about 12K, without mum to live with. These jobs in broadcasting do not really exist now. A trainee engineer might expect to get somewhere between 16K and 22K, for others skill sets you are lucky to get paid at all for the first couple of years it seems. Wages have definately not kept up with inflation in Broadcasting IMO. that time around 1974 must have been a period of great inflation. I joined in September. By the new year we had had a pay rise, back dated to....September....plus, as the new year struck....pay scales helped. By the time I left in May 1976, ! was getting around £50 a week, and the subsidised "trolley" in morning and afternoon and restaurant were making fast the inflation on my tummy area. I joined the Police and was then on just shy of £80 a week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nationalist Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 I joined the Police and was then on just shy of £80 a week. Well I hope you stayed for 30 years and are now making 66% of final salary, index-linked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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