Romanians & Bulgarians to claim UK benefits from January

[garethom]

Do you think it's just wages keeping people out of those jobs? I'm not so sure... I definitely agree with a living wage on general principle, but I'm not convinced a slightly higher wage is going to make someone with a 2:1 in Business Studies from Leeds University want to spend 40 hours a week cleaning toilets or chopping cabbage.

Hmm, hadn't thought of the devalued degrees. I think a bigger carrot can go some way to at least making the chronically out of work consider these jobs.

I actually consider myself pretty lucky to have fucked up my A Levels and missed out on University, because I have no idea what I'd be doing if I'd joined the labour market 4 years later than I did. I can only imagine how jarring reality is for the thousands of people that did "better" than me, but are now in a much worse situation.

God, this so, so much. I left sixth form after my last exam and a week later had an interview for the company I still work for. I've got friends that are two years removed from finishing at uni that are just back working at the same shop they were at before or during uni. Nightmare.

[Riddles]

Yeah, I'm pretty blessed I did the degree I did, I know so many people who've gone to work in a role they could have got with A levels 4 years ago without the silly amounts of debt.

That said, I'm not exactly rolling in it cos of my degree and I could have probably worked my way up above what I'm earning now by sacking off uni.

[m8son666]

yeah but imo it's definitely worth going to uni, just for the laughs and meeting loads of people.

Its about the journey not the destination or whatever that saying is

[Forum]

Massive debt, job I hate that pays shit wages, yeah that history degree was well worth it

[m8son666]

well ok definitely worth going uni if you do a 'proper' degree, or are genuinely interested in what you do.

[garethom]

Yeah, I'm pretty blessed I did the degree I did, I know so many people who've gone to work in a role they could have got with A levels 4 years ago without the silly amounts of debt.

That said, I'm not exactly rolling in it cos of my degree and I could have probably worked my way up above what I'm earning now by sacking off uni.

Out of my group of closest mates, here's where they got where they are:

Me: Software Test Lead/Manager - No degree
Mate #1: Head Buyer for a firm that puts together supermarkets - No degree
Mate #2: Works for a shipping company, generic admin monkey - Chemistry degree
Mate #3: Water quality technician for severn trent - Biology degree
Mate #4: TGI Friday's Waiter - English degree
Mate #5: Unemployed "actor" - Biology degree
Mate #6: Works in some clothes shop - History degree
Girlfriend: Design technician for an international engineering company - dropped out 2 months into a fine art degree

Some decent jobs, but none of them required a degree.

Other people I know of went to uni to do journalism degrees, now their job seems to be asking people about their life experiences on facebook as "research" for the daytime TV shows for some PR company. I think I know of two people that left uni and got a job fairly quickly in their chosen fields (and one of them was a graphic design student :O), and one of them has just sacked off a decent job at IBM to go "travelling" around Ibiza for two years. Wonder if he'll regret that in the near future.

I'm not gonna knock anyone's hustle, you do what you do for that precious p, but it must be fucking galling to spend tens of thousands of pounds and be right back where you were anyway. You're right Mag, for these people, must be a real knock on the pride to go begging around for "menial" jobs, but it would really soften the blow if they paid a few more quid an hour.

[garethom]

yeah but imo it's definitely worth going to uni, just for the laughs and meeting loads of people.

Its about the journey not the destination or whatever that saying is

I've met more people that I like in the 5 years I've been at work than I did in the 18 years before that. The money I earnt through work allowed me to have bare laughs. Never really understood this attitude, you don't turn into a drone the moment you start work.

[m8son666]

Meh, neither of us can really judge what it's like being in the opposite situation i spose. Although the majority of people i knew from college who didnt go uni (90% of people lol) are stuck doing bullshit jobs and having a shit time, obviously it's up to you what job you get and whether you enjoy it but same could be said about what you end up doing with a degree. I'm sure i will be able to get a better job with my degree than if i didn't get one and will have had 4 extra years of fucking about while doing roughly 15 hours of work a week lol.

[garethom]

Yeah, I'm not saying NOT getting a degree is better, I'm just saying basically everyone I know that went to uni has got a job they didn't need a degree for. Guess my point is that getting a degree is no longer and sure fire way of avoiding "shit jobs", but guess this is another issue for another thread.

I have ample fucking around time still bro, trust me.

[m8son666]

oh yeah definitely not a easy way of avoiding shit jobs. i'm definitely not ready for a 9-5 job tho lol fuuuuck that.

But yeah should probably leave this off topicness there haha

[garethom]

i'm definitely not ready for a 9-5 job tho lol fuuuuck that.

What do you mean by 9-5 job? They're just business hours in probably 90% of industries. You either wanna be a doctor or work at a club.

[m8son666]

I just mean like a standard 40ish hour a week full time job, regardless of what it would be.

[m8son666]

which is why i'm probably gonna do a phd and never leave uni lol

[garethom]

I just mean like a standard 40ish hour a week full time job, regardless of what it would be.

lol, so basically all jobs. You utter Romanian.

[m8son666]

yeah fuck that, i wanna put off not having a holiday longer than a month ever again for as long as possible tbh.

[karmacazee]

The whole point of the benefits system is as an altruistic tool to help people who are at a disadvantage in life, regardless of age, sex, colour, country of origin, economic status, class etc etc

It's not a members club that you 'pay' into to get a free sandwich, lol. You may never even get a sandwich.

It's a social contract to which we all automatically agree to as citizens of this country. And part of our end of the bargain is to agree to certain conditions to receive those benefits, has nothing to do with how much you pay into the system.

It's either for everyone or it's for no-one.

[Forum]

Getting out of working for another 3 years was the main reason I went to uni

[m8son666]

The whole point of the benefits system is as an altruistic tool to help people who are at a disadvantage in life, regardless of age, sex, colour, country of origin, economic status, class etc etc

It's not a members club that you 'pay' into to get a free sandwich, lol. You may never even get a sandwich.

It's a social contract to which we all automatically agree to as citizens of this country. And part of our end of the bargain is to agree to certain conditions to receive those benefits, has nothing to do with how much you pay into the system.

It's either for everyone or it's for no-one.

Yeah but for everyone who is a resident of the country who pays the benefits surely, not everyone in the whole world. Where would you draw the line? what if millions of poor people started coming to england and claiming benefits would that be ok?

[Forum]

Well, the EU allows free movement between its members and once they're here you cant just leave them on the street, so what do you suggest as the alternative?

[Genevieve]

[+] Spoiler

Genocide