8%.........

No bet yours did

 

Nope had a 20% pay cut about 4 years ago and nothing since then. Luckily my wife is a bloood sucking lawyer who tends to make more money when times are tough otherwise we would be in the do do.

 

In your line of work I would say in general you are underpaid. Comparing to those you mention we are all underpaid and they are all overpaid

 

I think it was inevitable and part of a deliberate policy to inflate away the debt; that means stealing our money.

 

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Oh don't I wish, like most people I.e. not " an executive" my pay hasn't risen anywhere near what is really needed. I work for BT and since privatisation our annual pay rise has been below inflation. We're fortunate not to have had a pay cut, as some very unfortunate folks have, but just using a comparison with a different body of workers ( whom I won't identify) our annual salary has dropped by 25% over the corresponding period, this is quite a substantial amount, particularly as it has been a year on year reduction, in real terms, over that period. Jus last year, when coming to the end of a 3 year pay agreement, the company renaged on their side of the deal. The agreement was that this years pay would depend on the rate of inflation in November. We were to received 3% unless the rate was above 3.2% or below 2.8% when it was to be renegotiated. It was 5.2% but what was the company response, " you don't deserve more than 3%" but the top man took 50% plus a big bonus and an increase in his pension pot! Oh to be up there!

 

Nothing for 2 years eh. Well you are doing better than many in the private sector. My staff have not had an increase since August 2008 and there isn't one in the pipeline either. I try to keep them happy where I can but there is no spare money. If they don't like it they can always leave. There are no bars on the doors, yet they are still here. Me, well I'm one of the high flying execs running my own business employing 6 people, and I'm earning a lot less than I did 5 years ago. My landlord has just given us notice to quit our building and we are faced with renting something else at a higher cost. The only way to cover the cost is reduce headcount and for me to go on the shop floor. Just what I wanted at 49 years old.

The guys getting paid the really big money are appointed by boards of directors, and the whole shebang is controlled by the shareholders. One can only assume the shareholders are happy with the return they are getting from the investment in the directors they appoint. The amount of money that Bob Diamond got paid in salary and severance was mind-boggling by our standards, but I bet he made more for the bank than he got paid. The reality is that in a profit making company you will never get paid what you are really worth, because if you did then the company would not make a profit. If you think it's unfair then just quit your low paid job and go be head of Barclays bank, or better still, just start your own bank or companmy. It's real easy.

 

Gilps, it's people like you who keep this country going, I'm sure you would give your staff a pay rise if you could, and there are many reasons why that isn't possible at the moment, however, I'm sure that as soon as is possible you will reward their loyalty. Unfortunately, this country is being run by people who are just money grabbers, it's very much a case of " sod you, I'm all right Jack". Keep up the good work, all the best regarding finding a new place to work from. And here's hoping you go from strength to strength.

 

Here's another thought, why don't we have an area on this forum, where the good folk who frequent here, can advertise their own companies and services. Then we can support each other and keep the " small/medium businesses" going. People like Gilps and Nog for example. There is obviously word of mouth, but a dedicated spot, where we can search and hopefully find what we are looking for, and support the forum members.

 

The engineering sector I worked in has seen revenues destroyed over the last 10 years, putting most out of business ....... those that have gained contracts in the last two years have had to put in hourly rates at levels below those from 1997 just to get anything - and I can assure you the rates then weren't exactly brilliant!

The money available to plan/carry out works has remained static..... however the cost of administering / managing services has almost doubled as it's still run along the lines of public sector, so the money available to pay the people who actually do the work has shrunken to near zero. End result; customer (and that's you & me) pays for a service they don't get.

Salaries at all levels in the private sector have gone backwards, not risen, over the past decade - so I get very angry with the "it's that Camerons/tories fault" brigade!

 

Of course it's a deliberate policy. When consumption has outstripped productivity, and the debt overhang is already too large, what is to be done? Have price inflation higher than wage inflation for a few years - that is the only solution in the short term. In the longer term, transition to higher productivity is required; that means less employees per unit output, which bluntly means some people lose their jobs. You can call basic economic realities "stealing" if you like, but I don't see how that helps.

 

Andy, I suspect you missed the red hot sarcasm dripping off Gilps' words and forming large pools at your feet : )

 

So very true Littlebert, the current government aren't to blame for the predicament the country finds itself in. That problem goes back a long way, and there are many arguments as to who is actually responsible. The issue here is what is happening at the moment, and " execs" who take huge pay rises whilst forcing the workforce into cuts or below inflation raises are the main bugbear. Cameron/Cleggs "we're all in this together" is very hollow. Patently we aren't all in it together because the average man is suffering. This country needs to get manufacturing again and that will only happen if the average man/woman has money to spend. Currently, the money in our pockets does not allow us to go out and spend, certainly not on "luxury" items. It's really a question of freeing up money within the system, the level of cuts mean more folk out of work, therefore more claiming which means less tax going into government coffers! It's a vicious circle, and I understand the need to reduce the deficit but IMO it needs to be done at a slower pace than currently.

 

You're right. I made the choice to become self employed, and I realise that I'm probably coming across as a "poor old me" type. In reality I do try to take the rough with the smooth. I don't shout from the roof tops when times are good and I'm making a few quid. I accept that it's the lot of the employer to have ups and downs. The bank did screw my last two businesses by pulling my overdraft at the end of 2008 right when I needed it most, but I've bounced back a bit.

However, the fat cats making the big bucks have always been there. Industrialists, bankers, and more recently hedge fund managers and the like have always made huge amounts of money. It's just that we only seem to notice it when we are being squeezed. When times are better then we take the view that we're ok and just let them get on with it. I would even go so far as to say that we have a habit of patting them on the back and looking up to them in times of boom as they are touted as being seen as an indicator of how well the economy is doing. The reality is the mega rich will only ever get richer. It's the way it works and we are powerless to change it. Money talks, and the big money controls governments. We may get to elect whoever we want to govern us, but big business really pulls the puppets strings.

 

The mega rich hold much of their wealth in the form of assets like company shares and land. If share prices or land values drop (as they do sometimes, and by quite a lot) some of the mega rich get poorer. Being worth one billion instead of two billion is still mega rich, obviously, but my point is it is not strictly true to say that 'the mega rich will only ever get richer'.