How much money can I expect
to earn, really?
Let's talk turkey - Show me the Money!
The current minimum wage for people aged 21 and over
outside of London is £5.93 an hour (before tax). If you're working in
London you might be paid a little more. If you're between the age of
18 - 21 you can be paid as little as £4.92 per hour. There are usually no
overtime or penalty rates in pubs. You may also receive nothing extra
for working bank holidays, Sundays or even Christmas day!
Click here for more information on the National Minimum Wage
If you're on a typical 40 hour week, you'll be making about £230
before tax and before your accommodation and upkeep is considered.
After tax – don't expect more than about £170 - £180 in your hand – if you have the correct tax numbers (Getting your tax numbers)
Wages in the UK are absolutely appalling, I found it one of the
hardest aspects of day to day living. And knowing how much I was
worth compared to what I was actually getting paid made it harder to
deal with. I can almost guarantee you that unless your income at the
moment is the equivalent of a paper delivery round, that you will earn
less money in the UK.
Before you go trying to convert British pounds into Dollars or Rand, first you have to know the value of things.
What does £1 buy me?
(as of Apr 2010)
£1.20 will buy you one litre of petrol
£2.29 for a solitary Big Mac
£3 should get you a pint of beer in most London pubs – cheaper out of London
£5.68 is the price of 20 Marlboro Lights
Want more prices on everyday products and services? Then you might want to check out
Money: Just how expensive is this United Kingdom place?
“Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen six, result happiness.”
Charles Dickens
The Global
Finanacial Crisis hit the worlds economies very hard, however as
countries like Australia, South Africa and Canada are recovering well,
the United Kingdom still has a long way to go. This means that your
money may buy you almost twice now than what it did in September last
year!
Still, even with the current weakness of the British Pound you've hopefully realised that this is not
a cheap country to live and work in. Pub job wages are notoriously
poor, but keep in mind, you have no bills, no accommodation or food
costs. That means that everything you earn can be spent on what you
want to have fun and not just on what you need to survive. Click here for more infomation on other pub costs
Don't
worry too much about money though. Thousands of young people just like
you choose a working holiday in the United Kingdom every year -
everyone's on a budget of some kind, even with no money, working in
pubs is still fun.
Click'next'to find out what hours you can expect to work
Click'back'to return to the Naked truths behind live-in pub work
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