PAL215 Posted November 10, 2009 Share Posted November 10, 2009 Second week of July 1971 saw me opening my very first pay packet; there was something special about paydays and opening that little brown envelope with real money inside. £6.40 for 40 hours work which gave me £5.98 take home pay of which £2.50 went on board the rest for me, I was king of the world. First thing I bought was a short sleeved Ben Sherman shirt from Colvins. That was working at Thomas Rudd & Sons on Woodfold making surgical scissors, one of my duties was the Friday fish and chip run when I had to take everyone’s order (at least 30 individual requests) go to the chippie and make sure I was back bang on 12:30. If was late I get a clip for keeping them waiting, if I was just a few minutes early I got a clip “cos mi dinners cold” and woe betide me if I got an order wrong. A fish was 6p and chips 3p and the perk for me was the chip shop owner gave me mine for free, well he did after I hinted that there was a chippie closer to work and I might start going there instead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Floridablade Posted November 11, 2009 Share Posted November 11, 2009 1943 1 quid a week painting and decorating for William Axe in Nether Edge and he expected me to pay my own tram fare. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pjkay Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 I wonder who will be able to come on with the earliest wage packet... they will be showing their age then wont they:D Yes I hold my hand up..Ten quid a week driving a bread van for Gillets bakery. Down By the Wicker somewhere. Born in 1938 so I am the youngest!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pjkay Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 Yes I hold my hand up..Ten quid a week driving a bread van for Gillets bakery. Down By the Wicker somewhere. Born in 1938 so I am the youngest!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JOGI Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 Sorry. Started in 1942 on 15/- per week. Then in '46 went down to 7/- per week when conscripted. But even so, I know there are others who post on here who must have had a lower starting wage than me!. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texas Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 Slightly off topic but still about wages. Someone mentioned 'real money' in brown envelopes and I reckon everybody got their dues like that, but when I worked on the railway we got our wages in a tin. Only a little tin, and they'd curl the notes around inside. It always looked good when you took the lid off. The most bizarre way of payment I experienced was (coming down the years a bit, about 1965 ) was when I worked, as a brickie, for an Irishman. His name was Patrick Tr**t, and he had a gang of about fifteen groundworkers. He would come, every payday, with the standard bank bag full of cash and pay out all of us from the bag. The guy never made a mistake, not with mine anyhow. He must've had a thousand quid or more in that bag. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs H Solo Posted November 13, 2009 Share Posted November 13, 2009 Started my apprenticeship in 1957, at the princely sum of two pounds a week. At the ripe old age of 21 when I finished said apprenticeship, the wage had risen to a mighty 12 quid a week. I was born in 1957 so in 1972 I worked as a saturday girl in Davys Bakery shop on city road and I earned £1.15 working from 8 am to 5.30 pm. In 1973 my first job was E W Hatfields on Sydney street as office junior were I earned £8 per week but after ni and possibly income tax but dont quote me on that, I came out with around £7.50. I am pleased to say though that I earn considerably more now and work a lot less! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barry Smith Posted January 23, 2018 Share Posted January 23, 2018 You lot had it easy dint ya, £2/8/6 (£2.42 and 1/2p) take home pay for a 40 hour week back in 1964 as an apprentice miller. Me too apprentice auto trician at Kennings. £3/5s a week, Whilst on the subject of money,,,people moan about mortgage payments,when I bought my first house, in around 1970 interest was 15% Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DUFFEMS Posted January 23, 2018 Share Posted January 23, 2018 We had our first mortgage in 1971 (married in 1970) repayment was £30 per month which was equal to a weeks' wages. Only one of us working because our first child was expected and there wasn't much work for pregnant women then. Oh, I forgot, you're right about the interest rates plus we had 3 day working weeks with power cuts etc., happy days....not! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barry Smith Posted January 23, 2018 Share Posted January 23, 2018 We had our first mortgage in 1971 (married in 1970) repayment was £30 per month which was equal to a weeks' wages. Only one of us working because our first child was expected and there wasn't much work for pregnant women then. Oh, I forgot, you're right about the interest rates plus we had 3 day working weeks with power cuts etc., happy days....not! Yes,,my mortgage was only £16.00 per month, but you could only pay per month what you earned in a week, I only earned £15.10s but a friendly insurance guy wangled it for me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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