Pay rise

[John Arton]

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/m...avy-operations
A pay rise for mariners serving in the RFA has been agreed between the unions and the government. This brings to an end a long running dispute over pay and conditions.
Rgds
J.A

[Des Taff Jenkins]

HI John
If they backdated it to 1952 I would be in with a chance. Any idea of what the pay scales are these days?
Des

[j.sabourn]

In 1982 Des, outside of working on a dedicated m.n. Support diving vessel dedicated to the Admiralty where the salary was standard British merchant service pay. Was asked to do a couple of jobs re conversion of merchant vessels on their 3 to 4 days sea trials. As there was the usual shipyard delays for the trials to commence I was issued with the regular remittance for self lodging in Cardiff. It was 32 pounds a day and bed and breakfast was 5 pounds a day , so managed to buy my long cherished greenhouse for the back garden when I got home. I think if the shipowner had been put to the similar test it would have been much below this subsistance rate, plus they would want receipts for everything . So I wasn’t complaining . On the other hand although in Australia and in similar circumstances the subsistence rate here made the uk look a bit sick. Cheers JS

[Des Taff Jenkins]

Ahh John, but we as the shipowner knew didn't go to sea for the money, we went for the food?
Des

[j.sabourn]

And that was on average in the 50s about 7/- a day so subsistence on leave was similar. The chief stewards bonus was if he kept it below this as well. I have all the rules Australian from 1991 wages ,meal subsidies , etc. etc. somewhere in house and this was agreement via the maritime unions and shipowner, it was as you know a closed shop, and conditions if I do say so myself are the best I have seen at sea in all my time spent there. Sadly think today from what can gather from the few still there that I knew , this no longer applies , due of course to the various governments in power at the various times. Aided and abetted by an unfriendly media of course. When I see the likes of unrest by various work forces one only reads one side of the argument or should say disagreement. Cheers JS.

[Des Taff Jenkins]

John
One thing about retirement there is only ONE boss, and that of course is the wife, but the food is good LoL
Des

[j.sabourn]

Probably like yourself Des, I am now chief cook and bottle washer , so have good idea of prices and work load that a woman today has especially with a young family to feed , and she probably has to work outside the home to help provide those funds. Which was mostly unheard of when we were growing up. We lived in better times no matter what we are told to the contrary , like “ you’ve never had it so good”. A well known saying.??? JS

[Ivan Cloherty]

[QUOTE=j.sabourn;438023]Probably like yourself Des, I am now chief cook and bottle washer , so have good idea of prices and work load that a woman today has especially with a young family to feed , and she probably has to work outside the home to help provide those funds. Which was mostly unheard of when we were growing up. We lived in better times no matter what we are told to the contrary , like “ you’ve never had it so good”. A well known saying.??? JS[/QUOTE

Careerwise we lived in better times and probably had more job satisfaction and saw more of the countries we visited as we spent longer in them and got the local views. As a kid growing up and being bombed out three times I am doubtful about the 'better times' We expected less and our parents didn't kow-tow to our likes and dislikes as far as food (or anything else) is concerned, you sat at the table, a plate of food was put in front of you, you ate it or left it, if you left it, it was there next meal time, only it was cold that time. If you got a 'Dinky' toy with the wheel missing. so be it, it was another to add to your collection. As for clothes and shoes 'Designer labels' were never heard of or an option, you got was available and what your clothing-allowance-coupons would cover. We didn't have skate-board parks and such like, we played on bomb sites, collected shrapnel, some found live ordnance and took it home to mum, she kept it on the top shelf in the kitchen until the Bobby came round to collect it. Better times!! perhaps not! enjoyable ? probably as we were easily satisfied because we didn't have the internet to make us disgruntled or make us feel bad because we didn't have the 'latest product of xyz'

We survived and were healthier despite it all and learned to cope went we went to sea or did our National Service. Our mums and the local Bobbies were our gods and had to be obeyed, and that expression, 'wait until your father gets home' was a kind of a bonus for us children of seamen as it would be another few months before that happened, mind you that bonus was sometimes not quite all it seemed as a week before Dad was due home your mother would say ' your dad is due home next week and don't think I have forgotten what you did'. Mind you mum and dad were so pleased to see each other when united she did forget what you did, thank god!!

[happy daze john in oz]

From about 1945 up to about 1970 the world was a good place.
Coming out of WW2 we learned how to cope with what was available, which at most times was very little.
Bread and butter pudding for dessert along with Sago or Baked rice pudding, try and find them now!!

Life was simple, we played with what we had and enjoyed it, got a smack on the **** on many occasions for doing wrong, do that now and you are up for chils cruelty.

WE had dreams of being firemen or film stars but ended up either with a nominal job or went top sea.
But we became men and went forward with a different perspective, we were on the way to achieving something for our efforts.
The travel opened our eyes to another world, learned so much from which we were to benefit later in life.

I look around at the younger generation of today, yes many do have ambitions to do well, but there are many who think life owes them a living.
Heer in z the cry, 'we will never be able to buy a house'!!
Maybe the same call in UK.

We were prepared to move out many of todays younger ones are not.
Born in the leafy inner suburbs where they want to stay.
But such suburbs are expensive, you need a champagne salary to live there, no god on a beer one.

So the clever ones, those with ambition, move out to the outer suburbs where the price is much lower.

But unlike us they will not have to use a jam jar to rink their tea, have to make their toast over an open fire, or live on stew made from all the meat left overs sold by the butcher at weeks end.
Never know what it is to eat fresh veg grown in your local allotment, or to return the milk bottles for the next day.

Slowly with modern life we are destroying the planet in an effort we are told will save it!!!
Maybe if things continue they will go back to having to grow on an allotment.

[j.sabourn]

That was one of our lessons at school John , working in the school garden. The veges were used for the school dinners. Woodwork was another subject which involved physical labour. I must say though in the science lessons we discreetly made stink bombs and try and drop them behind unsuspecting girls. Some of them didn’t even blush. JS
Just think if my suggestion to get rid of all the camels in Oz we ate them and you were still,serving at the dining table and said to your guest , “ne hump or two m’lord” , and his answer was “I’ll just have the dromedary steward” , you would have to learn a lot more skills re.the shrimp,on the barbie patter. JS….