Pensions

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dellzeqq

pre-talced and mighty
Location
SW2
Awesome. Prisoners get community service as a punishment, yet pensioners would be expected to do the same for their income? This guy is a [Expletive Deleted]
.
what troubled me about his contribution (if that's the word) is its ignorance. The people most likely to volunteer are the elderly. Take a look at the people who help in charity shops, or who run charities, or who act as volunteer drivers (I have to be careful here, because if Ian McS, our volunteer driver, is reading this, I am not suggesting that 62 is elderly or close to it).

My mother in law helps at a day centre and knits thing for the 'old folks'. She's 79.
 

Night Train

Maker of Things
I read a letter in the paper the other day where someone was saying that it was the selfish elderly, who were refusing to stop working, that was causing the unemployment for the young!
 

gary in derby

Well-Known Member
Location
Derby
Dont know where all these rich pensioners are? Both my parents and the inlaws certainly arnt. but then they were hard working manual workers. You know the ones! those who do the proper work that the old school tied tory tossers wont do. I bet not a single MP has ever had a blister let alone callouses. my dad was doing 12 hour shifts till he was 63 and had a heart attack. was forced to retire and now lives on the breadline. My mum was a school cleaner, and now has severe arthritis in both hands. god help the person who tries to make their world harder than it is. i for one will be joining the revolution. Mark my works it will come.
 

Pat "5mph"

A kilogrammicaly challenged woman
Moderator
Location
Glasgow
Guys, folks like me (low paid manual work) have no chance of a private pension, unless we have indeed lead a very frugal working life.
I was born 1963, to date I'm supposed to work until I'm 67 before I get a state pension, whatever tiny amount that is going to be.
In principle, health allowing, I would not mind working till I die (not the crazy hours I'm doing at the moment, though!) but there has to be some sort of retraining for the likes of us.
Expect me at 60 to stand 12 hours a day operating a coffee machine? Or taking apart a pallet of heavy boxes? Don't think so.
Expect a roofer to be up a ladder in the freezing rain at 70? Are we mad?
Not everybody automatically gets a less physical job role (ie sitting down at a desk) with age.
Retraining should be in something we enjoy, we choose to do.
 

gary in derby

Well-Known Member
Location
Derby
Well Said "Pat5mph"
I work for myself, Have what used to be a good trade.(electrician). but, i cant even afford a private pension. Has been 5 years since my business even showed a profit. the way the economy is im having to do work at cost. Sometimes at a loss just to keep going. I was also born in 63. So only have 17 years to save some money. But cant see that happening as will take 3 years to get rid of this namby pamby you scratch my back and ill scratch yours government. Then will take another 10 years to sort it out like it did after the last tory government in the 90s.
 

Pat "5mph"

A kilogrammicaly challenged woman
Moderator
Location
Glasgow
Well Said "Pat5mph"
I work for myself, Have what used to be a good trade.(electrician). but, i cant even afford a private pension. Has been 5 years since my business even showed a profit. the way the economy is im having to do work at cost. Sometimes at a loss just to keep going. I was also born in 63. So only have 17 years to save some money. But cant see that happening as will take 3 years to get rid of this namby pamby you scratch my back and ill scratch yours government. Then will take another 10 years to sort it out like it did after the last tory government in the 90s.

With my 50th birthday approaching fast, I'm starting to really have to plan my next move career wise.
I've always worked in catering, start to find it harder now, takes me longer to recover from shifts.
Hands up who needs a "sleeping day" a week because of work exhaustion :laugh:
I never liked office work.
Might get some qualification with the languages I speak, do some IT training, then emigrate again where those skills, combined with a good knowledge of English, will get one a decent job that can be feasible done when you're older,
Of course, I'll have to wait until the property market recovers, in order to be able to sell up :sad:
 

Longshot

Senior Member
Location
Surrey
Well Said "Pat5mph"
Then will take another 10 years to sort it out like it did after the last tory government in the 90s.

Blame the Tories all you like but it wasn't just them. Labour wiped out a huge chunk of personal pension worth when Blair/Brown did their pensions tax grab.

Don't kid yourself that this is divided down party lines. They will ALL sell you down the river given the opportunity and they will ALL protect their own inflated, undeserved pension with every fibre of their being.

This country is facing a huge problem based around retirement, pensions and the effects on employment. They can't fix it because they don't know how. Proposing to tax the rich more doesn't work - they have accountants who will always find a way round this stuff. It always ends up falling on the masses, always. As I said above, be careful what you wish for as it will come out of our pockets.
 

gary in derby

Well-Known Member
Location
Derby
Hi Longshot.
I agree they are all as bad as eachother. But, I am going on past experiance. Not any particular political view point. i left school at 16 just as the tories to over with maggie. Yes, had an apprenticship. But to the mismanagement of the economy back then the firm i worked for went bust before i could finish. so started again. and all through the 80s struggled to find perminant work in the construction industry. the early 90s not any better. But, come 97 the world changed and work was plentyful. right upto 2008. Have struggled again ever since. Would you like to guess who was in power then?
 

Pat "5mph"

A kilogrammicaly challenged woman
Moderator
Location
Glasgow
funny how other European countries seem to manage......
Nay, not everybody: my father in Italy is well off, only because he had a very good job in a private bank, with pension to match.
My brother, who is 38 now, with a crappy office job, will not get much of a pension, probably about 700/800 euros a month current rate.
My german Uncle, an IT manager, has no worries, but will have to work until he is 65, no chance of an early retirement - poor him :rolleyes:
My friends in Greece are lucky if they get paid: I know some that are not receiving salaries because their employers cannot pay them.
BTW, same happens in Italy, but this is a bit ot in this thread, sorry.
 

Longshot

Senior Member
Location
Surrey
Hi Longshot.
I agree they are all as bad as eachother. But, I am going on past experiance. Not any particular political view point. i left school at 16 just as the tories to over with maggie. Yes, had an apprenticship. But to the mismanagement of the economy back then the firm i worked for went bust before i could finish. so started again. and all through the 80s struggled to find perminant work in the construction industry. the early 90s not any better. But, come 97 the world changed and work was plentyful. right upto 2008. Have struggled again ever since. Would you like to guess who was in power then?

I can understand why you have your views but don't agree with your reasoning. Let's agree to disagree and move on ^_^
 
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