Flat-rate State Pension - Opinions?

[Doggy Styles]

Wow, you must be rich being able to predict now exactly what skills are required 15 years hence.

WHS

It's really amazing how some expect 50 million people to all predict the future and organise their numbers in the required trades in the correct proportions.

And get it right first time.

I didn't even know more than 20% of the careers available when I was 16.

[The Spartan]

Have you looked at the NHS pay-bands for nurses for example? (Pay for nurses - NHS Careers). Firefighters (non-manament)? (Firefighter: Salary and conditions | Prospects.ac.uk)

No doubt there are also many grossly overpaid public sector workers, but the majority hit by this rarely make it to 30k/pa.

Perhaps they should redistribute what they're wasting on the overpaid which in my view is the majority of clerical work that in the Civil Service.

In terms of the Fire Service the amount of people trying to join is well over subscribed so it can't be that bad, with regards to nursing I'm not too clued up on what each type/profession does there seems to be a lot of titles but it doesn't tell you exactly what they do so I'm not going to comment.

[Robinho]

I'm feeling the compassion and love for your fellow man here people.

Well what are the alternatives? We forcefully tax people to pay for his career mistakes or inflexibility? Punishing the taxpayer doesn't constitute compassion or a love for fellow man either.

I think you're over-blowing the issue anyway, a lot of people retrain in their life without issue.

[Doggy Styles]

You think it's appropriate to put all your eggs in one basket? We're no longer in an economy that can support one-trick-ponies.

You really do live on another planet if you think it is that easy for everyone.

[formant]

You really do live on another planet if you think it is that easy for everyone.

Given my own circumstances I really have no sympathy. I'm a subject matter expert in a highly specialised niche. I have 2 Masters and (so far) around three quarters of a self-funded doctorate in my field. Sure, I could sit on that, think I've done enough, and expect a constant flow of work. Or go cry about the lack of such.
Instead I've studied and paid for ISTQB certification and PMP training to take on testing and project management work whenever my niche doesn't have any jobs. Particularly the latter was pricey and bored me to death, but I'd rather be employable in something than struggle to find work.

I already said it's not easy. But it's reasonable to expect people to make an effort rather than to sit around and moan about how their trade went downhill leaving them to struggle.

[Robinho]

WHS

It's really amazing how some expect 50 million people to all predict the future and organise their numbers in the required trades in the correct proportions.

It's not that hard, the pricing mechanism does it all for you. A job that pays well now suggests a lack of supply, thus that job is likely to be around for a while albeit with potentially depressed rates. Yes some industries are destroyed by technological breakthrough but that is rare on the whole. Finally it's not really that hard to retrain is it and there are many transferable skills.

As so often in this country, policies seem to cater for the absolute worst case scenarios.

[The Spartan]

WHS

It's really amazing how some expect 50 million people to all predict the future and organise their numbers in the required trades in the correct proportions.

And get it right first time.

I didn't even know more than 20% of the careers available when I was 16.

Agreed I had no idea what I wanted to do, I fell in testing at the age of 25. There are only a handful of people I know from school who actually knew what they wanted to do and succeeded. Some of the brightest people I know ended up in mundane careers even after planning their futures out lol

[formant]

Perhaps they should redistribute what they're wasting on the overpaid which in my view is the majority of clerical work that in the Civil Service.

In terms of the Fire Service the amount of people trying to join is well over subscribed so it can't be that bad, with regards to nursing I'm not too clued up on what each type/profession does there seems to be a lot of titles but it doesn't tell you exactly what they do so I'm not going to comment.

I think my (probably poorly expressed) point with public sector workers such as nurses and firefighters was that their final-salary-pension scheme is a fundamental part of what makes their jobs worthwhile, as the income isn't great (nor is it very low, but they do require constantly up-to-date qualifications). Making them pay extra because of this employment benefit, so that the money can go to all those who've made poor choices in their careers or just didn't work enough, strikes me as grossly unfair.

No doubt I have less sympathy with higher-rate tax paying civil servants and the likes.

[Doggy Styles]

Given my own circumstances I really have no sympathy. I'm a subject matter expert in a high specialised niche. I have 2 Masters and (so far) around three quarters of a self-funded doctorate in my field. Sure, I could sit on that, think I've done enough, and expect a constant flow of work. Or go cry about the lack of such.
Instead I've studied and paid for ISTQB certification and PMP training to take on testing and project management work whenever my niche doesn't have any jobs. Particularly the latter was pricey and bored me to death, but I'd rather be employable in something than struggle to find work.

I already said it's not easy. But it's reasonable to expect people to make an effort rather than to sit around and moan about how their trade went downhill leaving them to struggle.

That's just being smug about your own abilities. What about Mrs shop assistant and Mr car builder? Not many are as clever as you.

[formant]

That's just being smug about your own abilities. What about Mrs shop assistant and Mr car builder? Not many are as clever as you.

Well, there's pretty much an infinite supply of retail jobs for Mrs Shop Assistant, so I wouldn't be so worried about her ability to remain employed for enough years to qualify for a pension in her own right.