The problem with the benefit system
Comments
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I choose early retirement.
I choose life.
The above may be fact, or fiction, I may be serious, I may be jesting.
I am not sure. You have no chance.Veronese68 wrote:PB is the most sensible person on here.0 -
I'd say we should stop paying state pensions now and start paying them out again in 2039
“New York has the haircuts, London has the trousers, but Belfast has the reason!0 -
Given the archetypal bricklayer probably didn't sit on their arse for 3 or 4 years of uni, maybe they get to retire earlier.
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This socialist fascist amalgam isn't working for you.
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I wasn't being entirely serious. There are of course jobs more suited to a younger body and those more suited to a more experienced mind. One isn't restricted from moving from one to the other.
1985 Mercian King of Mercia - work in progress (Hah! Who am I kidding?)
Pinnacle Monzonite
Part of the anti-growth coalition0 -
Other than experience of one and not the other. Same thing is stopping me from getting a job as a plumber.
We really need more diversity of thinking on this forum. Bloody hell.
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While it might be a bit bluntly put, why is this fundamentally different from a professional athlete or dancer having to think about what their career will be after their thirties?
1985 Mercian King of Mercia - work in progress (Hah! Who am I kidding?)
Pinnacle Monzonite
Part of the anti-growth coalition0 -
No, because it is people in their 60s.
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Sorry, you've lost me. What (do you think) is stopping you from being a plumber?
Is 'need more diversity of thought' code for 'need to agree with me'?
1985 Mercian King of Mercia - work in progress (Hah! Who am I kidding?)
Pinnacle Monzonite
Part of the anti-growth coalition0 -
This is going to become a big issue, particularly in light of raising the retirement age. I was reading a piece recently looking at this. Lots of people out there doing manual jobs they now struggle with physically. They can't retrain or get less physically demanding jobs due to lack of relevant experience. They can't claim PIP as they are not classed as disabled under benefit restrictions and they cannot afford to retire early. What are you supposed to do in this situation. Numbers of people who find themselves in this position will surely grow.
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I don't have any plumbing experience and I lack qualifications. Same thing as stops me from being an architect, more or less. I suppose I could do an apprenticeship but then how would I pay the mortgage* (*insert life commitments that adults have that school leavers tend not to have here). But then who wants an elderly apprentice? Not exactly future proofing the business is it.
Maybe I mean just more quality of thought. Such as some thought.
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Sorry, "can't retrain because of lack of experience??"
I mean, surely if you already had the experience one wouldn't need to re-train.
Also, if we're not to become one massive retirement home, we're going to just have to re-train the relatively small number of people in physically demanding jobs.
1985 Mercian King of Mercia - work in progress (Hah! Who am I kidding?)
Pinnacle Monzonite
Part of the anti-growth coalition0 -
Sadly most brickies are bodywise knackered by the time their mid 40s, mainly bad backs, knees shot or hands suffering from arthritis. Most plumbers by 50 are taking it easier as do most site electricians. As a maintenance engineer and ex contracting electrician I've seen more recently older retirees returning to work not because they need the money but because they've got nothing better to do or they're trying to help companies out due to skills shortage. As to state pension my generation onwards tend to have looked after our own pensions over and above the state pension. We were brought up to understand that hard work is rewarded. Just to put things into perspective I started work when there was over 4 million unemployed and have seen several recessions and survived. Never been unemployed or out of work so when I say younger generations have it easy I know what I'm on about.
Too many bikes according to Mrs O.2 -
You've misread my sentence (admittedly lacking punctuation and badly worded on my part). They don't have the relevant experience to switch to a less physically demanding job and feel they can't retrain in order to gain that experience due to their age (this was coming directly from people being interviewed).
I think we may need to widen our definition of physically demanding. One woman was a school dinner supervisor working full time. Her knees were shot and she was told 2 years minimum for knee replacement. She have up work and tried to get a desk job but couldn't as she had no relevant experience. She went back to a similar job but was in the process of resigning as it was too much. This is the kind if example I think will be much more prominent.
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Understood. I can believe some are less than receptive to the idea of re-training but I think it's something we're all going to have to get more used to.
1985 Mercian King of Mercia - work in progress (Hah! Who am I kidding?)
Pinnacle Monzonite
Part of the anti-growth coalition1 -
Tonnes of jobs and professions you can’t do even in your 50s.
You don’t have to do the same job your whole life?
My world has a lot of former professional athletes/sportspeople and ex-military, for example.
I’m not suggesting turning around to current 59 year olds and saying “yeah soz mate another 10 years suck it up” but with a bit of notice you can plan for it.
What alternative do you propose to solve the problem of unsustainably expensive end-of-life social security?
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Who knew making people responsible for planning for their own end-of-life was so controversial.
You’ve had what, 40 years of adult decision making at this point?
If your brickie wage does not allow you to retire before your body gives up - perhaps think about a career change sooner?
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(Some of these problems would be less problematic in a higher growth higher wage economy but I appreciate that is probably beyond the topic)
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My grandfather was still laying bricks and smoking a hundred a day at 69.
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What about 70? 😉
The above may be fact, or fiction, I may be serious, I may be jesting.
I am not sure. You have no chance.Veronese68 wrote:PB is the most sensible person on here.0 -
Retired. He had it easy.
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A tradesman who has worked on building sites all their lives can move into roles like site management or foreman roles where they make use of their experience without the physical elements.
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That is so incredibly arrogant sounding.
Have you had an empathy bypass?
Have you ever met a tradesman (or woman)?
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Oh yes, like football managers. You've got it all figured out.
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I work with them pretty much every day. As posted above, it might be characteristically bluntly put but if you have chosen a physically demanding career then giving some thought to how you might later move to something less physical is no more unreasonable than advising people to do more than rely on a state pension.
Given the scarcity of skilled trades there is certainly direct demand for those who can teach trades.
1985 Mercian King of Mercia - work in progress (Hah! Who am I kidding?)
Pinnacle Monzonite
Part of the anti-growth coalition0 -
Yeah most of them do well and can afford to retire early on their own pension 👍🏻
which should be everyone’s aim fyi
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I’ve worked on dozens of construction projects over the years and it’s commonplace. Obviously not all can do it and many tradespeople are self-employed. Personally I’d go for pensions being based on working life rather than a specific age so if you start working as an apprentice at 16 you retire 5 years earlier than someone who started work at 21 or later after doing one or more degrees.
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On the other thread pensioners aren't fit to be driving and need taking off the road
On this thread they're driving that HGV until the good lord comes for them
“New York has the haircuts, London has the trousers, but Belfast has the reason!4 -
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Yeah. But they don't know that
“New York has the haircuts, London has the trousers, but Belfast has the reason!2
