Pension income needed to retire jumps as family costs rise https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-68222807 its articles like this that grips my shit! We have to have a bigger pension due to being “expected to offer financial support to our grandchildren?!!” I don’t have any kids so maybe my opinion is a little skewed but is society in such a state now that to have children it’s only possible if the grandparents “chip in” or is it just that people need to relearn what “living within your means” means?
TBH if we are stupid enough to vote in a government that will do this, and then don't get off our arses and riot in the streets to stop them we probably deserve it.
An article based on something that the The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association has said... I wonder what side their bread is buttered. Absolute scaremongering.
Maybe it's still early, but I found that article very odd and hard to follow. Who are these ' in-depth discussion groups'? I want a job doing that!
The last time LAB were in power, the waiting lists for hips, knees and even cataract operations was not dissimilar from now. When the Tories took over again the waiting list was weeks/ It took 4 - 5 years of recruitment, building infrastructure and a huge amount of taxpayers cash to make it happen. https://www.ft.com/content/168e1278-2b24-11df-93d8-00144feabdc0 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1871752/ Maybe they will do something similar again. Either way the NHS will not be worse than now. In a democracy, the government can't take your freedoms from you by force, so they just convince enough of you to hand it over voluntarily.
I've had a couple of clinicians out right tell me the service is knackered and it will only get worse.
I know several who say its in a bad way due to deliberate mismanagement & underfunding, but they a;so worked under Labour and are hopeful to see a massive change.
They certainly were last time. See my other post #147 for links But in any case its extremely unlikely that any government will be worse than the current scum. Highest taxation for 70 years Highest national debt ever Totally bungled Brexit Highest immigration ever by a margin of 5 million (forget about 40K in small boats) Longest NHS waiting times ever Worst availability of dental care ever Two of the last 3 Prime Ministers investigated for fraud
Looking at the way this thread is going and what retired people talk about, I think I’ll keep on working.
Police starters are on around £21000, with something like 11% monthly paid into a pension pot. I make no comment on train drivers salary, other then to say it's rather common for officers to change careers to train drivers.
Train drivers start on a lot less than £40k too, I was looking at salary averages with a little experience in the roles to give real world comparisons.
Hey! Train driver here... For new entrants into the company I drive for, the starting salary is early £20ks. During that time, you'll be in a classroom environment for several weeks where you'll be taught The Rules. You'll have several assessments to pass which, if you fail - after some support in fairness - you'll be out of the job before you have really started. Once all assessments are passed, you have another course on the workings of the trains, the idea being if a fault arises, you'll be able to fix it to keep the train in service or at least get it to the next station. Guess what happens if you fail this? Yep, bye, bye. Well done, you've passed everything so far. About 10 weeks in, you can now start to actually drive a train. You'll be assigned a DI ( driver Instructor) who will watch your every move. Oh! Good news. Your salary is now just shy of £30k. You'll most likely be with your DI for a minimum of 250 hours. Depending on your DI's shift pattern, this'll take about 6-8 months, bearing in mind it wont be all spent driving. You'll be route learning, too. So, shift patterns. They're over seven days and you'll start anywhere between 0400 on earlies and finish, when on lates, as late (early!) as 0330. Shifts are around 8-9 hours. Overtime for weekends? No. Bank holidays? Standard pay. So if you're working Easter Sunday from 1600 til half past midnight, that's just your shift. Standard pay. Once your DI thinks you're upto scratch, it'll be time for your 'driving test' - your final assessment. This will take five days. Five days of shitting yourself whilst trying to remain calm and collected. You could still fail even though you're months and months in. You're still not earning £30k yet. Two days will be spent driving over any route you've learnt, with your assessor, another day on a simulator where unusual (but entirely possible) scenarios are created and a day spent in a stationary train covering all manor of issues and details you'll be expected to know. 'Talk me through how you deal with an air burst in the main reservoir'. If you pass days 1-4, day 5 is more of a form filling, tying up loose ends type day and hopefully an earlier finish and a weekend to celebrate. Don't go too hard, though. You're driving solo on monday and if you were to be breathalysed you'd be out of a job instantly if you fail, the limit being about a third of that for drink driving in a car. Now you've got this far, your salary will go to £45k for your first year. The pay structure is as mentioned above. You're discouraged from doing overtime on your days off during the first few months, but the only way you, any driver regardless of experience, will earn extra is by giving up a day off. There are no shift allowances or bank holiday extras. I mentioned route learning. You are expected to know all speed restrictions (speed limits in highway terminology) for everywhere you drive. These will vary enormously across your area. Overspeed when approaching a red signal? TPWS will apply the emergency brakes and you have some forms to fill in and meetings without coffee. Same will apply if you're too fast into a speed restriction drop of greater than 30% Pass a signal at danger (red)? Same again. If you're unlucky to have all three of these incidents, as an example, in the first 12-18 months, you're most likely looking for another job. You've got to stop at stations, too, remember! Ever seen those (usually blue) signs at stations that say 4-8 car stop (other variations too)? That's what a driver is aiming for, so they'll to know the corresponding braking point. Which will be slightly different in wet weather conditions. Helpfully, those stop car marks will be in different places along the platform, from station to station...You need to know where they are at all stations you stop at. Oh. And NEVER release (open) the doors of a 12 car train at the four car stop mark. Passengers falling four feet onto a live track, possibly a 750v conductor rail, makes you quite unpopular. And facing another meeting without beverages. Periodically your manager will take a train download. Yes, just like an aircraft, trains have black box data recorders. They record EVERY control input a driver makes. Fuck up and think you can get away with it? Are you feeling lucky? Well, are you? If you are, and you're caught out, it's instant dismissal. Gross misconduct. The non-declaration of your incident is seen as a greater 'crime' than the incident itself. Every mistake that falls into a certain criteria (the issues I've mentioned already, and there are others) must be reported. Finally, after further assessments throughout your first 12 months, your salary will increase, but to less than £56k pa. You'll be subject to assessments throughout the rest of your train driver career, but that first 12 months is pretty full on. So, yes. Driving a train is just pushing a few buttons and levers. Just in a very consistent, precise manner at all hours of the day and night, whilst having big brother monitoring your performance constantly. Think it's for you? Go do it. It's a great job. (It might be helpful to explain that not all train companies will have the same pay structure as the one I work for. Same applies to certain terms and conditions. It's why the ASLEF strikes are unresolved; an offer made by the DfT wont be relevant to all drivers. The DfT know this but won't allow individual companies to negotiate)
